Any Port in a Storm
by SaltyJak
Summary: Timmy Turner firmly believed that life wasn't fair. He was fourteen, was still being babysat and teased by Vicky, bullied by Francis, and the only two chances he had at love slipped out of his grasp. But... Life was full of curve balls too. After an accident leaves Vicky in an unpleasant situation, will Timmy be able help her? Does she even want his help?
1. Chapter 1

Life wasn't fair.

After being alive and existing for fourteen years, Timmy was sure of this.

If life were fair, Timmy Turner wouldn't have the same teacher now that he'd had since elementary school; Denzel Crocker. Resident psycho, school teacher, and nutjob who searched for any and all magical creatures whose legends he could scrounge up from the darkest reaches of the internet. To date, he had yet to prove the existence of any creature that he claimed to search for. Bigfoot, Nessie, Champ, Skunk Ape, Fairy Godparents, Half-Demons, Full Demons, Angels, Witches, Warlocks, Elves, Santa, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy, Cupid... the list went on and on, but Crocker never found any of them.

This didn't stop him from harassing the pink hat-wearing boy at every opportunity. Everyday was the same:

"Ready to admit you have Fairy Godparents, Turner?"

"No."

"'F'!"

"Fantastic..."

Maybe Crocker would stop following him when he got to College...

If life were fair, Timmy wouldn't have to deal with Francis, a gray-skinned mutant with a penchant for wholesome family-friendly activities like torture, beating children, beating adults, stealing, beating old people, beating off, and beating pretty much anything that could be beaten to a pulp. Timmy had long ago left Francis behind in middle school, yet that didn't stop the fifteen year old from showing up every now and again and laying into him, stealing his money, or(you guessed it) beating on him.

"Hey Turner."

"Francis."

"Have you met my fist?"

"Francis, I-"

-Cue Timmy being interrupted by a fist to the eye-

"My fist says it's nice to meet you. Maybe you can meet my other fist later today?"

"I look forward to it with bated breath..."

Maybe Francis would get arrested for the attempted rape charge that was sure to be in his future...

If life were fair, Timmy's best friend Chester wouldn't need braces to correct his crooked teeth. Nor would Chester be a part of the losers group that was comprised of Timmy, Chester, AJ, and Tootie. He would be rich and famous, get all the girls he wanted, not live in a trailer, have a normal non-bag-on-his-head-wearing dad, and his mom would be in the pictures they took at Christmas in front of a dead pine tree. Instead of not at all.

"Hey dude. Nice shiner."

"Thanks, might get the matching set."

"Oh yeah? I heard that's the 'in' thing this year!"

Maybe Chester would find a nice girl at the very least...

Timmy sat down at his lunch table with the rest of his friends.

If life were fair, AJ wouldn't be bald. He'd go to a fancy school like Harvard, be a professor at ten, be a physicist at twelve, and cure cancer by fourteen. He'd be well respected by everyone who encountered him, have an even nicer house, be friends with the president... AJ would go places.

"Hey AJ."

"Hey Timmy. Met up with Francis for your daily fight lessons, eh?"

"You know me, I'm a big brave dog."

Maybe AJ would still go places, he was pretty smart, after all.

Timmy turned his attention to his best friend, the only girl in their little group.

If life were fair, he would've taken Tootie up on her wanting to date him, rather than be distracted by Trixie. He would've been okay with her slightly overbearing nature and odd advances. She would be his first love. His only love. They'd graduate together, go to college together, graduate together(again), get married, have two kids named Tommy and Tammy, a nice house with a white picket fence, they'd have the 'American Dream'. She wouldn't have given up on him before his sad realization about Trixie.

"Hey Toots."

Tootie handed him her ice pack that kept her lunch cold. "Here."

"You're the best."

"I know." she giggled cutely at him.

Maybe they could be together in another universe... But not this one.

If life were fair, Trixie wouldn't be unattainable. She would've jumped at the chance to go out with Timmy because she would've seen what a great guy his friends insisted he was. He and her would have their own 'American Dream' with pretty much the same layout as his and Tootie's. Except... if life were fair, he would've woken up before the dream began and seen her for what she was: Manipulative, spoiled, crazy... Well, maybe that was too mean. Hanging out with Vicky likely made Timmy dislike her more than she deserved. Still, he saw her for what she was... or what he thought she was.

"Trixie's looking over here."

"She's nuts."

"She probably likes girls."

"Tootie, I think you're right... and way too perceptive."

Maybe waking up was for the best.

If life were fair, Veronica wouldn't have played second fiddle to Trixie. She deserved better. She thought she deserved Timmy. And she did, but Timmy didn't deserve her. Veronica should have a guy who could appreciate her, not one who was too oblivious to see that she liked him.

"There's Veronica too."

"You like her."

"So what if I do?!" Chester shot back defensively.

"You should talk to her."

"Maybe..."

Maybe one day he would. Timmy hoped so.

If life were fair, Timmy's parents would have loved him like your parents are supposed to at that age: Unconditionally. Timmy wasn't a bad kid, not even remotely. Mischievous yes, but bad? No. At eight, they left him alone and he called _her_ babysitting service out of fear. He didn't want to be alone. She came over... and he realized just how unfair life could be. They believed _her_ over him every time. Every. Single. Time. What could he have possibly done in this life to warrant such cruelty? At eight, no less!

"Mom? Dad? I'm home!"

"Great news, Sport! We're going to a cookout!"

"Really?! Awesome!"

"It _is_ awesome! For us! You can't come. Adults only."

"B-but..."

"Oh... don't worry! Your favorite babysitter Vicky is coming over! Since you two are best friends, you'll have plenty of fun here!"

Maybe they didn't care about him after all...

Finally... If life were fair... Vicky wouldn't be in it. That's it. Well, perhaps not. Timmy didn't even wish for _her_ to not exist, much as he disliked her. Everyone had a right to live. Even evil babysitters. Even Vicky. Because, in that regard, life _was_ fair. Yet if life were fair, Vicky would only be his babysitter. She wouldn't be his classmate. She wouldn't wear somewhat skimpy outfits to tease him. She wouldn't know that he secretly harbored weird, twisted, out of place feelings for her. However, she wouldn't be Tootie's sister who loved her like a sister should if life _wasn't_ fair.

"Hey Twerp."

"What is it?"

"These shorts seem... too short?"

"My front teeth seem too big?"

"Yes."

"Hmph."

Maybe- No, definitely, Vicky wasn't this horrible in another universe.

He walked home from school now. Sporting an extra shiner courtesy of Francis.

And _she_ insisted on walking home by his side. Any other girl would've been fine. Any. But he got her instead. Red hair, pale skin, pink eyes.

Vicky Vicky Vicky. If life were fair, that would be the correct spelling. As it appeared in his head.

But, again, life wasn't fair. Just as another excuse to tease, torture, and annoy him, Vicky preferred 'Vicki'.

Her reasoning? Because it sounded cuter. And looked cuter when written on paper.

As if anything could make her cuter... Wait, what?

She wasn't cute.

Not ever.

Nope.

"So Twerp, what's with the double shiners?" she poked at his cheek, seemingly being careful to not harm him.

"Francis."

"Ah, right." she looked away. Even someone like her wasn't safe from someone like him. He teased her too, even more than Tootie and other girls. "That's what you get for standing up to him." Vicki shrugged nonchalantly.

"Right. I was standing up to him, let's go with that." He hadn't been standing up to Francis, he _had_ been walking to class when Francis suddenly showed up though.

"I forgot, you're a coward." Vicki stepped forward and stuck her foot out, tripping Timmy and causing him to fall to the ground.

Timmy laid on the ground for several seconds before releasing an annoyed sigh. "Why are you walking home with me?" his voice was muffled by the sidewalk his face was currently pressed against.

"Cuz your parents asked me to babysit you, duh. I _could_ go home first, but the walk to your house is shorter and I need someone to do my homework for me."

Timmy got up off the ground and dusted himself off, then glared at Vicki. "You do realize that you're two grades higher than me, right?"

"Yeah-huh. And I owe all that to you for doing my homework for me... also I'm blackmailing Crocker."

"So why do you need me to do your homework?!" Timmy yelled exasperatedly.

"I- hm... I guess I don't... Anyway, c'mon, my homework isn't gonna do itself!" Vicki walked further ahead, sashaying her hips just slightly to tease him.

Vicky V- What was it again? Valentine? He thought he heard someone say that that was her last name once, but Vicki went out of her way to hide it. Timmy didn't really know why, the name wasn't particularly embarrassing, or silly sounding. He supposed it must be Tootie's too, though it didn't quite fit with the naming convention that people in Dimmsdale apparently used: Timmy Turner, Vicki Valentine, Chester Chesterton, Trixie Tang... What was it that AJ had called that...? Alliteration? That sounded like one of those big words he'd use.

"You'd better not be hanging back so you can stare at my ass!"

"_Then why walk like that?!" _Timmy ran up and matched Vicki's stride. "I keep up with you, so you trip me, I fall behind, you get mad at me for looking at your ass... I can't win with you!"

"Thought you'd be used to it by now." Vicki stuck her foot out again, but Timmy hopped over it this time. "Wow, you actually dodged it."

"The same trick twice in a row? I'm not an- AHH!" Timmy was interrupted as Vicki crouched and swept her leg into his shins, causing him to faceplant once again.

"What was that? Couldn't hear you over your make-out session with the asphalt." Vicki snickered as she continued walking ahead of him.

Timmy looked up and watched as she walked away. How could someone like her; someone only two years older than him, be fit to be a babysitter? How did she have the time or the energy to babysit Timmy, AJ, Chester, and Tootie? Who knows, she may have babysat other kids as well. Then again, there was little energy involved when it came to Vicki's version of babysitting. All she did was sit on the couch and watch TV, play video games, or read magazines, so it made sense.

Timmy once again pushed himself off the ground and followed after Vicki. "Crocker ever bother you about... Fairies?" he wasn't really sure why he was trying to make small talk with someone like her, but maybe it would distract her and keep her from tripping him again. Unlikely, but worth a shot.

"Fairies?" Vicki stopped walking and raised her hand to her chin in thought. "Like... magical wish granting fairies? Like in the _Fairy_ tales?"

"Yeah, those."

"Of course he has. I'm pretty sure he's asked just about every kid he's ever taught if they have fairy godparents or some such shit. Why?"

"Just wondering..." Timmy looked forward, avoiding Vicki's gaze and saw that they were almost to his house.

"Huh. Yeah, I told him I did."

"What?!" Timmy looked at Vicki incredulously. "You do?!"

"Of course not! This look like some crazy story from someone's equally crazy mind?! This is the real world here! There are no fairies, witches-"

"_Might have to disagree with you on the subject of witches..." _Timmy thought.

"Goblins, dragons, bigfoots... I just told him I had fairies to see how he would react; and boy oh boy did he react perfectly!" Vicki smiled evilly.

"How'd he react?"

"He came over to my house and talked his way past my parents, saying that I was in danger. My parents, being good parents; if a little low in the common sense department, allowed him to rush up to my room. He burst through the door... While I was getting dressed. Cue Tootie, a digital camera, and a very embarrassed Crocker, and now I have the perfect thing to blackmail him with. It's so perfect, it still gives me goosebumps!" Vicki giggled to herself.

"Aren't you... embarrassed about putting yourself on display like that?" Timmy asked with genuine curiosity, this was the longest non-hostile conversation he had managed to have with the red-head. The longer he could keep it going, the longer he could stave off more torture at her hands.

"Please. He only saw me without a shirt and my back was facing him. Trust me, no one's getting a free show anytime soon." Vicki turned her attention to her nails, finding them far more interesting than her conversation with Timmy.

Timmy felt a strange feeling in his chest... Relief? It had to be that, but why? _"Damn teenage hormones..."_

"Penny for your thoughts..."

"They're not worth getting into. Let's just get back to my house, I'm getting a- AHH!" Timmy once again fell on the ground thanks to Vicki tripping him. "Headache..." Timmy mumbled into the asphalt.

"Is it feeling any better?" Vicki asked in a sweet, yet mocking voice as she walked away.

"Like you care..." Timmy mumbled as he stood up.

Vicki was waiting for him on his front porch, though he didn't know why; she had a key, just like him. "Man, you sure are clumsy today."

"Yeah, I must've gotten a concussion when Francis punched me." Timmy deadpanned and opened the door. He attempted to walk ahead of her, but she shoved him out of the way.

"Ladies first." Vicki pushed past him.

"I don't see any ladies around here..."

"Watch your mouth before I staple it shut." her eyes flashed dangerously at him. "And don't think I won't do it." Vicki walked over to the couch and flopped down into it, her long slender legs propped up on the armrest while her head reclined on the pillow. "Get to work doing... whatever your chores are." she grabbed the remote and turned on the TV. "I mean now."

"Of course. It's not like I might need ice for my two black eyes, certainly not..."

"They don't look like life-threatening injuries."

Timmy grumbled as he walked past her and into the kitchen. Spying a post-it note on the table, he grabbed an ice pack from the freezer, then looked at the note while he pressed the pack to his right eye.

_Dear Vicki and Timmy, How are you two? We're going to see a famous opera in downtown Dimmsdale and won't be back until late evening! We expect you both to do your chores while we're gone. __Vicki, please mop the kitchen, do the dishes, and vacuum the living room. Timmy, please clean your room, water the garden, skim the pool, and clean the bathroom. Love you both! Timmy's Mom and Dad._

"_Love you both? Since when is she their daughter?"_ Timmy looked out the window at his Mother's garden and sighed. The plants in it were all brown and skeletal, any fruits they bore were shriveled and black. Despite his best efforts, Timmy couldn't save the plants from his Mother. He'd bring them back from the brink time and time again, but as soon as she went out there to begin tending them, they died on the spot.

Timmy shifted the ice pack to his left eye. "Skim the pool..." The pool Vicki forced him to dig two years ago. It was a good-sized in ground pool and took up much of the backyard. If anyone asked, Vicki put up that saccharine facade and said she helped. She _did_ help, but mostly by wearing a bikini and shouting words of encouragement/discouragement, depending on how she was feeling and how fast Timmy was digging. "Why not just hire a pool boy for it...?"

"Because you're the pool boy, Twerp!" he heard Vicki shout from the living room.

"Noted." Cleaning his room wasn't too bad, nor was cleaning the bathroom, as long as Vicki didn't make him scrub it with his toothbrush. But those were just _his_ chores he was covering, he had to do Vicki's as well... "Do the dishes..." Timmy glanced at the mountain of dishes looming over him from the kitchen sink and thanked whatever God that was listening that his parents had splurged on a dishwasher. _"...Which is probably why they asked Vicki to do them..."_

"Y'know what I don't hear? The sound of chores being done!"

Ignoring Vicki, Timmy thought about the other chores that his parents had left for the demonic red-head. "Vacuuming the living room..." it was hardly even a chore since his parents bought one of those little robots that did it for you, all while crashing into every single thing that was in the room it was vacuuming. Finally, there was mopping the floor in the kitchen, the only chore that had any real semblance of difficulty.

One might think that Timmy wouldn't mind so much, since Vicki's chores were hardly all that difficult, but it cut him even more to know that they were giving Vicki the easy chores and Timmy the hard ones. And for what? Because she must have it harder because she had to babysit him? Because Vicki fooled them into thinking she was the sweetest girl around? ...Because they loved her more than him?

Timmy took the ice pack away and felt his eyes. Both still felt somewhat swollen and were a bit tender, but they were definitely better than they had been.

The pool came first, just so that Timmy could get away from Vicki while she lazed around in the house. There wasn't much to pull out; some leaves, a pine cone, a dead possum... Timmy chucked it over the fence and into the Dinkleburg's pool because, why not? When he felt the pool was sufficiently cleaned, he went to the front yard to water his Mother's plants. As he made his way there, he passed by the window that looked into the living room and looked in. Vicki was reclining on the couch as usual, watching TV as usual. She noticed him and smiled sweetly while waving.

He didn't return the gesture.

Timmy watered the plants and they immediately turned green and sprang back to life, as if to mock his Mother and her poor gardening skills. The shriveled black fruits turned red and engorged themselves, revealing that they were actually tomatoes. Timmy picked a few and carried them in his shirt like it was a basket into the house, passing Vicki and allowing her to take one of the tomatoes which, surprisingly, didn't shrivel to dust from her touch. "Wow. You're good at doing my homework _and_ you can garden? All you need to be able to do now is cook and you'll be the perfect man to sweep some desperate, desperate girl off her feet."

"Not interested." Timmy remarked plainly as he walked by Vicki. Had he looked back, he would've seen her blush at his statement.

"I- I didn't mean me!" she threw the tomato at him, but missed and hit the wall. "Clean that up too!"

Timmy shook his head as he entered the kitchen and deposited the tomatoes in a bowl on the table, then grabbed some paper towels and returned to the living room to wipe the tomato off the wall.

"How are my chores coming?" Vicki didn't bother to look at him.

"Fine." Timmy walked over and pressed the button on the small vacuuming robot, then went back in the kitchen and began placing dishes from the mountainous pile in the sink into the dishwasher, then started it once they were all in. "Next is..." Timmy's eyes fell upon the mop leaning in the corner. "Right..."

As he mopped the floor, he thought about his time with this nightmarish creature known as Vicki. They had known each other for six years now, six years that felt like eternity. In those six years, Vicki had tortured him, lied to his parents, stolen from various stores(though she didn't blame _that_ on him), blackmailed him, and pretty much cheated her way through life. Fighting back against her was futile. She worked her magic on his parents and made them think she was a perfect little princess. In their eyes, Vicki really was the daughter they always wanted... but that was because they didn't know the _real_ her, and they likely never would.

But. He had made peace with that, bad as she was, Vicki never _really_ hurt him... physically. Emotionally? Different story. Mentally? A similar story. She delighted in playing little games with him. Like asking how her cut-off jean shorts fit. Or asking if the top she wore was cut too low. Or telling him he'd never amount to anything. Or that he was a loser.

He winced slightly as his headache came back in full force. He then cleaned off the mop head and returned it to its lonely corner.

Looking over the list of chores, Timmy crossed off those that he had already finished. "All that's left is... My room and the bathroom." Timmy entered the living room and sat down in front of Vicki's legs on the couch, causing it to bounce slightly and Vicki to be startled awake.

"Agh! I- wha-? Oh, it's just you-" Vicki stretched and yawned cutely.

"_Cutely? God, I need help..."_

"What are you doing? Don't you have chores to do?"

"Taking a break." Timmy reclined into the couch, pressing his back into her legs lightly as he did.

"Did I say you could take a break?"

"No." Timmy closed his sore eyes, hoping that would be the end of it.

It wasn't.

"Then get off and get back to work!" Vicki tried pulling her legs out from under Timmy to no avail.

"Pass..." his response wasn't malicious, just tired. "Just let me rest for a few. Your chores are all done anyway..."

Vicki seemed to contemplate his words for several seconds before giving her response. "Don't you dare tell people that I'm going soft on you." she yanked her legs out from under him and laid them across his lap.

Timmy cracked an eye open and looked at Vicki to find that her eyes were closed, then looked at her legs and their current position. He had to admit, when she was being quiet and the two of them were just relaxing, it felt nice. Almost like they were a couple- _"__Don't say it! Don't think it, either! You're both just a couple of lunatics if you say it!"_

Timmy shook his head and grimaced at the pain the action brought with it. It felt like his brain was rattling around in his skull.

"Would you stop shaking the damn couch?! I let you take a break, so you repay me by shaking the couch like an epileptic?!"

"Sorry." Timmy relaxed back into the couch and closed his eyes again.

Now Vicki cracked an eye open to look at Timmy. The swelling in his eyes hadn't gone down much, and his nose was scraped from when she tripped him, but he looked almost... content? "You'd better not go getting 'excited' from this." she just now realized how close her legs were to a certain place on Timmy.

"Excited?" Timmy looked at her with genuine bewilderment. "What do you mean by-"

Vicki moved her leg slightly to emphasize her point. "Don't sit there and tell me you haven't had perverted thoughts about me."

"I haven't!" Okay, that was a lie, but telling the truth here was... well, it wasn't an option.

"Right... Just remember, if I feel even the slightest amount of..." Vicki blushed a deep crimson. "I'm kicking you, _hard_."

"Once again, noted." Timmy blushed slightly himself and looked away.

An uncomfortable silence followed.

"Hey."

Which Vicki broke, yet did not arouse Timmy's attention.

"Hey."

Timmy felt more pressure on his legs from Vicki's as she sat up.

"The price of ignoring me may be steeper than you're willing to pay..."

"What?" Timmy asked tiredly and turned to find that Vicki was leaning uncomfortably close. "Um..." his blush returned full force as Vicki stared into his eyes.

"Does it hurt much?" her hand came up and came to rest on his cheek.

Timmy was surprised as he unconsciously leaned into it rather than shy away like he normally would have.

Vicki seemed to be equally surprised by the act as she froze in place.

"It's fine. Doesn't hurt so much now..."

"Oh. Um... Good. That's- that's good."

He felt conflicted suddenly. More conflicted than he had ever felt. There wasn't any denying that he had some feelings for Vicki... But this moment they were sharing felt... perfect. Part of him wanted to enjoy it while it lasted, but part of him...

Part of him wanted to see how far it could go.

Part of him wanted to love, and be loved in return.

Even if it was from her.

The girl who teased him.

The girl he didn't- ...couldn't love.

The girl who didn't love him.

Timmy leaned forward.

What did he have to lose?

Quite a lot, actually.

He felt his forehead lightly bump into hers and rest there.

"What are you doing?" Vicki looked at him with narrowed eyes.

"..." Timmy's eyes responded with just a hint of fear. What _was_ he doing? "Um..."

"You were gonna kiss me, weren't you?" her voice was barely above a whisper.

"..."

"You were!" Vicki pulled away and looked at Timmy with amusement. "I knew you had a crush on me!"

"I- ah- no! I just-!"

"Nope! No denying it! You almost kissed me just now!"

"I-! I was just lost-"

"Lost in the moment?" Vicki swooned and hung her head over the arm of the couch. "That's so _sweet_! Hahaha!"

She was laughing at him. At the fact that she tricked him into exposing his feelings for her, to her.

"_That's what you get..." _Even his own thoughts were mocking him now. "Yeah..." Timmy stood up and made for the staircase.

Vicki's hand shot out and grabbed Timmy's wrist. "Don't be like that!" she was barely holding in another fit of laughter. "I realize I'm a beautiful specimen of woman, so you shouldn't be embarrassed about having a crush on me!"

Timmy glared at her coldly and yanked his hand away. "Yet you're more than happy to make fun of me for it. I can't believe I actually thought that you and I-" _"Careful there Turner, you've given her enough ammo for one day."_ "It doesn't matter..." Timmy ascended the stairs and went into the bathroom to finish the rest of his chores.

Vicki watched him leave and almost felt bad at first. Almost. _"I'm more than happy to- I was just joking! Does he- And what doesn't matter?!" _"You'd better be doing your Goddamned chores!"

No response.

"Coward..." she muttered under her breath.

Timmy set about cleaning the upstairs bathroom, the toilet, the sink, bathtub, mirror... "How could I have been so stupid?!" Timmy headbutted the sink in anger, causing his headache to return once more.

"I."

Timmy headbutted the sink again.

"Am."

And again.

"Such."

Once more. Then he opened the medicine cabinet, pulled out a couple of pain pills and swallowed them with a mouthful of water. "An idiot..."

Amazingly enough, the sink(and his head) were both unharmed, so Timmy finished cleaning the bathroom and exited it...

Only to crash into something oddly soft that smelled like... lilacs? Definitely some kind of flower...

"Like I said: Pervert." he was shoved away by Vicki into the now closed bathroom door.

He had apparently walked right into her, and being that he was still a bit shorter than Vicki... He had walked into her chest. "What do you want _now_? Haven't I suffered enough head trauma today?!" Timmy rubbed the back of his head where it collided with the door.

"I only came up to make sure you weren't breaking things up here. Sounded like you were slamming something."

"You're hearing things. I was just cleaning the bathroom." Timmy shrugged at her.

"I'll be the judge of that." Vicki pushed past him and went into the bathroom.

After a few seconds, Timmy followed her in. "See? I cleaned it, just like I said I did."

"Hmm... Fine, I guess you did. Not exactly a glamorous job..."

"Huh?"

"I could've done better."

"Be my guest." Timmy held out the washcloth he used.

"And demean myself further? I already have to spend more time with you than I want, I'm not doing your chores for you."

"Yes, I'd hate for you to have to know the pain and torture I go through on a daily basis by cleaning up after myself..."

"Keep it up. I'll make one of those eyes blacker at the rate you're going." Vicki threatened with a dangerous edge.

"No you won't." the words surprised Timmy himself, nevermind Vicki, but he didn't show it.

"Oh? I won't, huh?"

"You can threaten me all you want, but you and I both know you won't hit me." _"Wow. Go me..."_

"You sure you wanna test that theory? Maybe I just have a mountain of self-control. Maybe I just don't wanna leave any marks on you? Maybe you've never given me enough reason to... but now..." Vicki cracked her knuckles threateningly.

As a surprise to both of them, Timmy stood his ground, though he swallowed nervously.

"_How can he be so confident?! Where's the sheepish, scared Timmy that I'm used to?! Where's the Timmy that I put the fear of... well, me, into?" _Vicki pulled back her right hand and balled it into a fist, then brought it forward with lightning speed.

Timmy waited for the impact. Had he finally pushed back too hard? No... this wasn't his fault; _she_ was the one who had been awful to _him_, mocking him for liking her... He didn't deserve to get hit, to be told he was useless, a loser, a coward... If she hit him... that would be it for her, she couldn't possibly deny it to his parents. They'd see how bad she really was; he'd finally get rid of her and move on with his life. Most of all, she'd prove that she really was as bad as he, Chester, AJ, and all the other kids she babysat thought she was. He knew this was going to hurt though, Vicki took some sort of martial arts classes. She had told him what they were called, but he tuned her out, not caring in the slightest. He steeled himself for the blow that he was sure was coming, he had been contemplating for several seconds now, it had to be coming, right about to connect...

Except it didn't.

Because life _was_ fair and she stopped just before hitting him. He didn't blink, didn't even flinch. Just stared at her fist and her face beyond it. A face that carried some unidentifiable emotion, one he couldn't place.

Perhaps she stopped because life _wasn't_ fair and she realized what would happen if she did punch him.

She pulled her hand away and let it fall to her side. "Clean your room and stay there."

Her voice sounded odd. Was that hatred in it? Sorrow? Pity? Something else that someone like her couldn't possibly feel?

He watched as she went downstairs, her footfalls barely audible on the stairs.

Timmy turned away and went into his room, then collapsed onto his bed. His head hurt, and not just from the physical trauma he had endured that day. His thoughts made it feel like his head was about to burst, figuring out this girl was taking a heavy toll on his mental state. He thought he had figured her out to some extent.

She was evil, she was terrible, she was a red-head. She was Vicki. And yet...

There were times when they were together that the barest hint of a human being came out of the tough, abrasive shell that comprised who she was. Times where she was almost bearable. Times where he was reminded of the reason he had the feelings for her that he kept locked away...

He looked up from the faceplant he fell into on his pillow. His room was spotless, a testament to how out of touch his parents were with their only child when they asked that he clean his room. The bed was made, the computer desk was clear of clutter, his dresser was neat and organized, and the fishbowl on his bedside table was empty; the goldfish in it having died the year before, of natural causes, surprisingly enough. Pets were generally a luxury that Timmy resigned himself to not being able to afford. School trips meant that he couldn't take them with him and his parents couldn't be bothered to do something so simple as feed the animals. Unless he went and got a snake or some other hardy reptile...

Either way, it was too big a risk. Timmy was the type to wear his heart on his sleeve, getting another pet and getting attached to it only for it to die was more than he was willing to put himself through again. So after his goldfish died, the fishbowl remained empty and almost forgotten.

"At least my chores are done..." Timmy said with a sigh as his eyelids began to droop. Sleep seemed like a good idea right about now...

_Downstairs..._

Vicki flipped through channels on the TV, trying her best to not think about how Timmy had not only stood up to her, but the fact that she had backed down at the last second and not hit him like he deserved.

Yes he deserved it. Her job was to keep him in line, if that meant hitting him or scaring him, it was her job to do it.

And he had talked back to her. _"How dare he?! Where does he get off talking to me like that?!"_

Vicki began pressing the channel button harder, hoping her anger would make a channel appear that would distract her from her thoughts.

In Vicki's mind, she wasn't wrong. She was _never_ wrong. She didn't _need_ a reason to act the way she did, she just did. Manipulating people to get her way came naturally, putting up a sweet facade to get what she wanted and threatening people when the sweet facade didn't work; it all seemed to be so... easy for her. Granted, those two sides of her didn't work all the time, Francis was immune to the threats, and she didn't dare act sweet around him, he already harassed her enough, she didn't need to give his peanut brain another reason to follow her around.

Her parents weren't to blame. They were easily the nicest parents her and Tootie could ask for... Vicki made sure to hide the fact that she was mean to people like Timmy from them though. Mostly because she was sure that her parents would have been disappointed in her for her behavior and, unusually enough, she actually cared about what her parents thought of her. They were certainly far better than Timmy's were to him.

"_Oh God?! Do I actually feel sorry for him?! No... sorrow is one thing... I pity him, that's all..." _"Ugh... the Hell's wrong with me?! I must be tired..."

Vicki pushed herself deeper into the couch cushions and got more comfortable.

_Several hours later..._

Timmy awoke and looked around. His eyes were still throbbing slightly... and it was dark.

"Great. I've gone blind..." a car went by outside, its headlights slightly illuminating his room. "Wait, false alarm. It's dark out." he got out of bed and stretched, then opened the door to his room and went downstairs to the living room.

Vicki laid on the couch, still asleep from what he could tell. He attempted to tiptoe the rest of the way, but years of listening to children stealthily creep around had given her a greater sense of hearing than most. "Our chores had better be done..." she was still waking up... maybe he could work this to his favor...

He crouched down next to her. "Go back to sleep... this is... uh... just a dream. Yeah..." he spoke in a soft, almost soothing voice.

"Yeah..." Vicki rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "And I'm late for piloting a giant robot."

"Worth a shot..." Timmy got up from his position and went into the kitchen.

"It really wasn't. Your voice is about as soothing as a cat being ripped in half."

"Thanks for that mental image..." Timmy shuddered.

"Are the chores done?" Vicki walked into the kitchen and microwaved herself some sliders.

"Yeah. They're done." Timmy took the ice pack out of the freezer and brought it up to his right eye.

"Now you're just milking that-"

Timmy took the ice pack away to reveal that his eyes were both still blackened, still swollen, and bloodshot.

"Um..." Vicki turned away and grabbed her food. Timmy huffed in annoyance, but was surprised when Vicki placed a plate down for him, as well as herself.

"What's that for?"

"It's what's for dinner. I'm not cooking for you. Not more than that, anyway."

Timmy looked down at the food before him with his uncovered eye. It had to be a trick. They were still frozen, or she poisoned them... or he'd take a bite and snakes would fly out... Okay, that might be a little over the top, but still.

"They're not poisoned. And I cooked 'em thoroughly." Vicki bit into one of her own burgers.

Timmy continued staring blankly at his own.

"Fine, I'll eat them. No sense letting them go to waste..." she extended her arm and her fingers wrapped around the rim of his plate, but stopped when his hand came down to rest on hers.

Time seemed to stop as Timmy's eyes locked on Vicki's, then both teens looked at their touching hands.

"Thanks." Timmy squeezed her hand very,_ very_ slightly, hoping that he could get across to her the fact that he appreciated what she did without her freaking out, or worse, lashing out at him.

Vicki pulled her hand away and continued eating.

Timmy released a shaky breath that he didn't know he had been holding and placed the ice pack on the table, then began eating as well. _"That went better than expected..."_

This was nice, like when they were sharing the couch, no fighting, no arguing, just sitting around. Peace and quiet. Not so far as enjoying each others company, but at least things were calm between the two.

_RING-RING_

Then the phone rang.

_RING-RING_

And continued to ring.

_RING-RING_

"Gonna answer that?" Vicki looked at Timmy.

Timmy sighed and gave her a tired look, but stood up from his food and answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Timmy? It's Mommy, are you okay?"

"_Mommy? Since when does mom call herself Mommy?" _"Are _you_ okay? You sound upset..."

"I'm fine but..."

He could tell his mother was on the verge of tears, but why? "Is Dad okay?"

"Yes... your Father's fine, we're both fine... but..."

He could tell from her voice that the tears were beginning to fall. "Then what's the matter?" he noticed Vicki looking at him with a raised eyebrow. She mouthed 'What's going on' at him, but he shook his head. He didn't know much at the moment. "Mom, just take a deep breath, what's going on?"

"Is Vicki still there?"

"Yeah... I'm looking right at her."

"Good, keep her there, we'll be over in a few, both of you get ready to go."

"Go where?! Mom, what's going on?! Are you in trouble? You're freaking me out here!"

"No... no. We're not in trouble... Honey... it's Vicki..."

Timmy looked over at Vicki, who now had a somewhat worried expression, though she was trying fairly hard to hide it. "What about Vicki...?" Timmy swallowed nervously.

As his mother relayed what was appearing to be forbidden information to him, Timmy felt his heart sink lower and lower as a sickening taste in his throat rose higher and higher. If he did have fairies, he'd wish away the knowledge he just received. No... he'd wish what happened never happened...

"Alright Mom, we'll be ready when you guys get here..."

"Now that you know... you should probably tell her... You're her best friend..."

Once again, his parents were wrong about his relationship with Vicki. They weren't friends. They weren't even acquaintances. He was Timmy, she was Vicki. That's all they were to each other, yet now his mother expected him to...

Timmy placed the phone back on the charger and sat down at the table across from Vicki.

"So? What's up? You don't look so good."

Timmy's head snapped up to look at Vicki. "I- we- we need to get dressed." Timmy made no move to stand up.

"For... what exactly?"

Right now, Timmy would rather be anywhere else in the world. Sitting in front of his whole school in his underwear while playing a trumpet, diving in shark infested waters while wearing a bacon necklace, being the president in a time of war, even pointing a gun at the head of the entire universe. But not here and now, anything, anywhere, not here, not now...

"I don't think you'll want to hear it from me. You should wait until my parents get here..."

"Don't even think about it! You tell me right now, or so help me, I'll- I- I don't know what I'll do! Tell me!"

No, life wasn't fair.

"It's your parents."

Vicki watched as a few stray tears ran down Timmy's cheeks. _"He _does_ wear his heart on his sleeve..."_

"And Tootie."

"What about them?! Tell me!" Vicki couldn't keep the anguish out of her own voice now.

"They... were in an accident."

"What-" Vicki swallowed past the growing lump in her throat. "What do you mean, an accident?"

"Vicki, I'm- I'm so sorry, I know you don't want to hear this from-"

"Tell me!" Vicki slammed her hands on the table, causing Timmy to jump in his seat.

Vicki, red-headed demon, witch, bane of his existence and occasional roommate; was crying now. And the sight tore his heart in two. He wanted to reach out, to try and comfort her, that's what he was supposed to do in this type of situation, right?

But he couldn't. He was rooted to the spot.

"Tell me..." she sounded so sad, so... fragile...

"There... was a car accident while they were driving back to Dimmsdale from the mall..."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Okay, so being the type of sappy hopeless romantic that I am, I put a bit of romance into this one. Not much, though I could've, considering the length of the chapter. I would've preferred to keep the romance on hold until maybe... chapter 5, but seeing as how Vicki is going to be fairly tsundere in this(hopefully not Asuka levels of tsundere like in Evangelion, that's a bit much, even for me), I figured I could add in a bit. Just a bit.

* * *

><p>Much as he wanted to wait for his parents to get there, she wouldn't allow it; she wanted answers, so he gave her answers. And the news that he had tried so hard to put off came spilling out like water from a breached floodgate.<p>

"My Mom wouldn't tell me much over the phone, but t-there was-" _"Dammit! Get the stutter out of your voice!" _"There was a drunk driver on the highway... he must've swerved into your parents' lane... It- it was a head-on collision. Your-" Timmy stopped to catch his breath and organize his thoughts. He watched as Vicki merely stared at him. _"She must be in shock or-"_

"So what happened?!" Vicki practically screamed the question at him. "What- Are my parents okay?!" Why did she even ask that? He said it was a head-on collision; on the highway. Who could survive that?

"...No... they're not..." Timmy had met Vicki's parents a few times. They were good people; it was jarring to think that they could spawn someone as vile and cruel as Vicki. In fact, when Tootie introduced him to them, they welcomed him like _his_ parents never had; like a family. He may not have spent much time with them, but they definitely cared about him, and he cared about them. He certainly didn't want something like this to happen to them, or anyone for that matter.

"So... they're... hurt, right? They just need to be in the hospital for a while and-"

"Vicki." this wasn't right. He was supposed to be tough for her, the girl who was tough to everyone else. Yet here they both were, tears streaming down their faces, breathing ragged, and hearts torn to pieces. "Vicki, you know they aren't-"

"Shut up! Just... shut up! Don't tell me they're... don't..." Vicki laid her head down on her arms and shook with sobs.

"_At least she doesn't think this is some kind of cruel joke..."_ "My mom and dad are coming to get us to go to the hospital. Tootie is-"

"Tootie?!" Vicki's head shot up and looked at Timmy, the slightest glimmer of hope visible in her eyes. "What happened to Tootie?! Is she okay?!"

"I don't know. All I know is that she was brought to Dimmsdale General. She's still alive, from what information my mom was able to get out of the doctors, but..."

"We- we have to get ready... We have to-" Vicki stood up from her chair at the table, the action knocking the chair to the floor.

Timmy watched as Vicki sprinted into the living room to grab her coat. He had proven her right. He was a coward. She was sitting right in front of him, she needed someone, someone to tell her that everything would be alright, even if it was just a convenient lie... And all he did was sit there and cry his eyes out like a child. No wonder she thought he was a coward, a loser... No wonder she teased him like she did...

Timmy stood up and followed Vicki into the living room to find that she was sitting straight up on the couch. Her jacket was on and she was fidgeting slightly, tears continued to stream down every now and then. "Vicki?"

She didn't respond, her eyes remained glued to the window, awaiting the headlights that would signify his parents' arrival.

"Vicki?" Timmy put on his coat and sat down next to her on the couch. Should he try and comfort her? No, that was completely out of the question... Right? Would she even want him to? Nevermind that he wanted to, to tell her that Tootie would be alright. Did _she_ want him to? No, there was no way she wanted him to... Timmy chose to ignore his better judgment and laid his left hand over her right as it rested on her leg, then gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

He wanted to say something, but it would be better not to. If he told her things would be okay, it would only be a lie to fool the both of them. He also wanted her to act like her old self; to give him one of her trademark vitriolic looks, to yank her hand away, even call him names... But she didn't. Whether it was because she didn't realize he was holding her hand, or maybe she simply didn't care; she didn't pull away like she would have at any other time.

He tried looking at her face for something, some look to show that she appreciated the gesture... or hated it, hated _him_, but her face betrayed nothing but a small hint of sorrow... or was it despair?

They both knew what would happen to her and Tootie, assuming Tootie surv- _"No, I can't think like that. Tootie _will_ survive... she has to!" _Vicki and Tootie were both still too young to take care of themselves, nevermind each other. And they had no close family members in Dimmsdale; in fact, Timmy didn't know of any other family members at all.

The foster care system was cruel. Most homes were never really checked up on by the workers, they could have criminals, drug dealers... predators... It was nearly impossible to know what kind of people lived in foster homes these days... And Tootie and Vicki might not even be able to go to the same foster home. They could be split up and never see each other again.

And Timmy might never see them again either...

"Vicki!" Timmy's mother burst through the door and wrapped her arms around her not-daughter, followed by Timmy's father. "I'm sorry Vicki! I can't imagine what you're going through right now..." his mother began balling her eyes out again.

Timmy's father released Vicki and his wife and looked at Timmy. "How're you holding up?"

"I'm fine. Vicki's the one hurting right now." he gently squeezed her hand again, then felt her pull her hand out from under his. He thought about looking her way, but knew better. Vicki didn't want him to comfort her after all; the only reason she didn't pull away earlier was because Timmy was the only source of comfort around. Better him than no one. But now that his parents were home... "Is Tootie okay?"

"I- I don't know. She got pretty banged up in the accident, but the doctors don't want to say anything and give us false hope..."

"Oh..." Timmy looked down at his feet.

"But..." his father spoke, causing Timmy and Vicki to both look up at him. "A doctor I asked there said she appeared to be stable right now. We should go visit her, if you two think you're up for it."

"She- she's okay?!" Vicki stood up from the couch and disentangled herself from Timmy's mother.

"We don't know for sure-"

"We have to go see her! Please!"

"Alright, alright. Let's go you two..." Timmy's father led them out to the car and everyone got in.

As they pulled out of the driveway, Timmy stole a glance at Vicki to see that she still wore that indifferent mask she had put on when he sat next to her on the couch after giving her the news. Now wasn't the time to talk to her about it, he wasn't sure if there _ever_ would be a time to talk to Vicki about it. She certainly wouldn't want him to bring it up. Everyone knows they're going to lose their parents one day... but to lose the only family you have...

Bad as his parents were at taking care of him, he still loved them. He wouldn't know what to do with himself if his and Vicki's roles were reversed... Opting to let her have time to herself, especially after how quick she was to push him away, Timmy looked out the window. It was late September, the school year had just started, the leaves were just beginning to fall, and now, as if the heavens themselves understood the plight of the red-head to his left, the rain began to fall.

When they arrived at the hospital, Vicki was the first to get out of the car, followed by Timmy's mother.

As Timmy moved to get out, his father spoke. "Son... I know that you and Vicki are close... but she may need some space right now..."

If only his father knew how far off he was about the two of them.

"She'll probably come to you... when she's ready."

"_Like that'd ever happen... Hell would freeze over first."_ "Alright..."

Timmy's father got out of the car and followed his wife into the hospital.

After a few minutes, Timmy moved to join them.

He was left behind, unsurprisingly. Timmy made his way to the reception desk. "Hi. I'm looking for... Tootie- um... Tootie Valentine's room?"

The blonde girl behind the desk didn't look to be older than eighteen, her hair was in a ponytail, and she didn't seem like she ever got enough sleep, judging by the bags under her eyes. "I heard about her... hope she's alright... Y'know, only family's allowed to see her..."

"I'm her... Brother. Timmy Valentine." _"How weird does that sound?"_

"Mm-hm? Well alright then, she's in the seventh floor ICU. Way I heard it, she was pretty banged up when she got here, but she must be a tough girl, doc says she's stabilized now... According to the computer anyway. For all we know, she could've taken a turn for the worse in the last three minutes and suffered a massive pulmonary- Um... Nevermind. Room Seven-one-three."

Timmy slowly backed away from the slightly creepy receptionist and got in the elevator, then pressed the 'Seven' button. Reaching the seventh floor, Timmy exited the elevator and followed the signs to the ICU. He had to admit, compared to how they depict them on those medical TV shows, it was oddly quiet. Then again, every patient in the ICU on this floor _did_ get their own room, so who knew what was going on behind closed doors?

Timmy eventually found the room he was looking for and entered. His mother and father stood by the hospital bed, but Vicki and Tootie were out of sight, presumably behind the curtain near the bed. His mother noticed him and nodded him over.

As he approached the bed, Timmy's nostrils filled with that 'hospital' smell that so many people referred to when they spoke of the places. He realized now that the 'hospital' smell was more than likely a 'medicine' smell. As he walked around the corner formed by the curtain, he was surprised to find that for someone who had just been in a car accident, Tootie looked remarkably unharmed. Of course, he couldn't see internal injuries, so...

Vicki sat in a chair near the bed, holding Tootie's hand in her own. She was crying again, but she was smiling slightly, so that was... something.

"Um... Hey Toots..." Timmy waved at Tootie, who raised her other hand at him to wave weakly.

"Timmy..." Tootie had always had a meek, almost timid way of speaking, but now... now she sounded like someone on their last legs, about to take their last breath.

Vicki turned her head suddenly to look at Timmy. He almost caught the faintest hints of a glare from her, but she quickly looked away to hide it when she remembered that his parents were in the room.

"_Even now, she still does her best to keep up appearances..."_ "How do you feel?"

"Like I was in a car accident..." Tootie giggled weakly at her joke.

"Tootie... that's not funny... and don't laugh too much. Any strain could open your stitches back up..." Vicki lightly chastised her sister.

"_Stitches? So she's worse than she looks..." _Aside from a few bandages and the IV she was hooked up to, Tootie really didn't look all that hurt, though her hair was fairly messy and matted down.

Timmy took several steps forward and moved to grab Tootie's hand. Vicki eyed him warily at first, then scooted over so that there was just enough room for him to share the chair with her. Timmy noticed her kind gesture and hesitated. The last thing he wanted to do was upset her in some way. Sitting in the chair with her, even if she offered it to him, might set her off.

Yet so could _not_ accepting her offer. It was why Vicki was so hard to figure out, she ran hot and cold, borderline bipolar at times...

He sat down next to her and rubbed Tootie's knuckles. She squeezed his hand in response. "I'm glad you came..."

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I knew you would. It's just... I saw your mom and dad... and Vicki... I thought you weren't here..."

"I got caught up in the lobby..."

"Mr. and Mrs. Turner?" a doctor with a slicked back gray hairdo came in. He sounded and looked experienced(read: old). "There are some things we need to discuss about Tootie."

That didn't sound good. "Anything you can tell my mom and dad you can tell me and Vicki. Especially Vicki, she's her sister." Why were things always a big secret with doctors?

"That's alright. Timmy? Vicki? Will you two be alright in here?"

"Yeah, we'll be fine." Timmy responded, while Vicki just nodded in the affirmative.

"Alright, we'll be right outside the door if you need us."

Timmy watched his parents leave, then turned his attention back to Tootie. "Does it hurt?"

"Not really. I had some surgery or whatever when I got here. Whatever they gave me is making me pretty oblivious to any pain I might feel... Least I'm still pretty lucid..."

Timmy watched as Tootie looked out the window and began to drift off to sleep, then turned to Vicki, who still held Tootie's hand along with his, her fingers lightly brushing against his. "Does she know?" he hoped he didn't have to question any more than that.

Vicki took her attention off of Tootie and looked at him. From what he could tell from her expression, she looked like she was out of tears and very tired. "I told her."

"You sure that was wise?" he knew enough about the grieving and healing processes to know that they didn't exactly go hand in hand in this case. "Can she... handle that right now?"

"Fuck if I know... she's either too in shock or too medicated to let it bother her right now... Once she sobers up... I just didn't want to have to lie to her, tell her that they're okay when..." Vicki stopped and looked at their touching hands.

"Are you o-"

"No. I'm not. When you ask me again in an hour, my answer will be the same. And an hour from then? Still the same. I'm not going to be okay, not ever..."

Maybe she was being serious, maybe she was being dramatic. He couldn't be sure and it certainly wasn't the time to ask.

Timmy pulled his hand away from Tootie's and instead looped his arm around Vicki's shoulders. She almost immediately, likely reflexively, pushed him away... At least, she tried.

"Let go."

"You can't push me away all the time."

"I don't need your pity."

"But you _do _need a hug." Timmy tightened his hold on her. He felt her attempt to push him away even harder, before giving up and not quite leaning away, yet not quite leaning into him.

"D-don't think this changes anything between us. You forced me into a hug..."

"I know." Timmy replied solemnly.

"I don't know what'll happen to me and her... We'll probably be put into foster care..."

"I know."

"...I'm scared, Twerp."

"I know." he wanted to say 'Me too', but he wasn't scared. How could he be? His family wasn't being torn apart in the span of a day, hers was... then again... "Me too."

"What do you have to be scared about?"

"Tootie's my best friend, I don't want her to be put in foster care, nor do I want the two of you to never see each other again."

"Don't care if I get put in foster care though, right?"

"I didn't say that."

"Then what _are_ you saying?"

"I-"

Timmy heard the door to the room open again along with the voices of his parents. Vicki took advantage of the distraction and pulled herself free of Timmy's arm, she looked at him to see the hurt expression she knew would be there. "Don't give me that look..." she mumbled.

"Timmy? Vicki?"

Timmy slowly looked away from Vicki and over to his parents. "What's up?"

"We- we're not sure how things are going to go for Tootie and Vicki over the next few days, but... Vicki... if you want to stay with us until the foster care worker comes, you're more than welcome to..."

This news may have bothered Timmy at one point, but Vicki had already slept over before, being that his parents saw her as the daughter they never had(and if Timmy's wardrobe was anything to go by; had always wanted). The main thing he hated about Vicki sleeping over(besides having to spend far too much time with her) was that she usually weaseled her way into his bed. And him out of it.

"Thank you, but... I wanna stay here with Tootie. In case she- I don't want to lose her too..." Vicki looked at Tootie and took her hand in hers again.

"Vicki, the doctor told us that it was touch and go for a while in surgery, but he said that Tootie will very likely pull through. C'mon, you've had a tough day, you should get some rest..."

"..." Vicki made no moves to get up or even turn away from her sister.

"Vicki?" Timmy's mother walked over and put her hand on her shoulder.

"...Alright." Vicki stood up and leaned over Tootie, placing a kiss on her forehead as she did. "Can we stop by my house to grab a few things?"

"Of course."

Timmy, his parents, and Vicki left the room. Tootie turned to see that they were gone. "Those two are... ugh... impossible..." she had heard the conversation that Timmy and Vicki had had while they thought she was asleep. That her parents were gone... it hurt; more than anything she had ever felt. More than her injuries did by a long shot, but it felt like there was a mental block of some sort, preventing the news from really hitting home... maybe she _was_ in shock. Then about going into foster care... and Timmy... he _forced_ Vicki into a hug? What a ridiculous thing for her sister to say... The more Tootie thought, the more her thoughts felt muddled and hazy; so, with a sigh, Tootie closed her eyes and tried to get to sleep.

_At Vicki's house..._

"Timmy, why don't you help Vicki with getting her things?"

"Sure." they really didn't get the fact that she disliked him with great intensity... He knew that helping her was the right thing to do, but every second he spent with her seemed to make her malice towards him grow. Still, if his parents told him to help her, he was going to do it. He'd only look like more of a prick to them if he didn't.

"That's- that's okay, I'm- um... I can do it."

See? She didn't want his help anyway, why-

"Oh, Timmy doesn't mind, right sweetie?"

His mother was really pouring on the charm today. He briefly wondered how long it would last... "I said I'd help... but if she doesn't want me to..."

"Fine. Come and 'help'." Vicki got out of the car and headed for her front door, followed hesitantly by Timmy.

She opened it and went inside, not bothering to wait or invite him in, then immediately made her way upstairs to her room.

Timmy entered the house and looked around. It already felt like some of the life was drained out of it.

He approached the far wall to see various pictures hanging on it. Several of Vicki and Tootie, a few also had their parents in them, but he took pause at one after a closer look. In the picture were Vicki, Tootie, their parents... and Timmy. It was taken when Tootie had asked her parents to bring him on a trip with them to Florida. He was dumbstruck by them when they immediately agreed with her idea. He was also hesitant to go, he had never left Dimmsdale before, never mind California, but it was better than staying around his house, or worse, the Learnatorium.

The picture had been taken at Universal Studios by a passerby; Vicki's mother asked him to do it. Vicki's parents looked happy in the picture, their arms around each others waists. Tootie stood next to Timmy, squeezing the life out of him with a hug, while Vicki stood on the opposite side, sticking her fingers up behind Timmy's head to make him look like he had bunny ears.

He looked closely at the picture and realized why she laughed at it whenever she looked at it when he was around. His prominent buck teeth and the bunny ears she gave him made him look ridiculous. Timmy couldn't suppress the giggle that escaped him with this revelation.

His mirth was quickly replaced by sadness upon his brain reminding him that there would be no more pictures like this. Vicki's parents, who had treated him like one of their own; just as his parents had done with Vicki, were gone. They weren't coming back, this wasn't a bad dream... And the despair he felt upon realizing this tore at his already wounded heart.

"Taking a trip down memory lane?"

Timmy jumped as Vicki spoke, she was suddenly right next to him with a dufflebag and backpack. Both looked to be stuffed with her things. "I remember this... It was last year..."

"Yeah. My parents probably would've sent me to boot camp or something, since you weren't gonna be around to keep an eye on me..."

"...They thought you were a great kid."

"Huh?" he looked at Vicki with confusion. Was she doing it again? Letting him get close so she could push him away?

"They always said that you seemed like 'such a nice boy' and that you 'would make some girl very happy one day'... They were ditzy like that. They felt bad... did I ever tell you that?" Vicki began looking at the other pictures. "I told them about how your parents were, when they asked me why I went over to keep an eye on you so often." Vicki laughed humorlessly. "They said someone like you should have parents that care; that a kid as good as you deserves that, at least."

"..."

"You listening to-" Vicki turned to look at Timmy to see a few tears stream down his face. "Me... Nevermind... we- um... we should get going. I got some changes of clothes for me and Tootie. Should be all set for a little while... at least until that... social worker or whatever comes to get me..." Vicki left and put her things into the trunk of the car, then called back from outside. "You comin'?"

Timmy left the house and locked the door, then got into the car. It would take something like her parents dying for Vicki to act more human, wouldn't it? All the times she had been mean to him suddenly seemed so far away, or like they had happened to someone else and he had only seen it happen.

_Back at Timmy's house..._

"Vicki? You don't mind sleeping on the couch, do you? I'm afraid we don't have any extra beds here..."

"That's alright Mrs. Turner. I've done it before, I can do it again. Thank you for letting me stay here..."

Timmy watched the conversation between his mother and Vicki. She was certainly handling the situation fairly well, all things considered. He'd be having a nervous breakdown right about now, were he in her shoes. It would be even worse actually, Vicki's parents actually cared about her. _"...And me..."_

"Okay, if you need anything, we'll be upstairs, goodnight Vicki."

"Goodnight Mr. and Mrs. Turner." Vicki and Timmy watched his parents head upstairs and out of sight.

"Do you... need me to get you anything?" Timmy asked.

"I'm fine." she spat back rather harshly as she laid down on the couch and wrapped her blanket around herself.

"Are- are you sure?"

"Unless you've been hiding a bed in your back pocket, no, there's nothing you can get me..."

It seemed that instead of blackmailing or threatening him out of his bed, she was going to guilt-trip him out of it, assuming she knew she was having that effect. "I could take the couch."

"What now?" Vicki turned back over to look at him like he had three heads.

"I mean... if you want. I don't really mind and you could probably use a comfy bed..." he opted not to add 'especially after tonight'.

"I already told you, I don't need or _want_ your pity. Go away..."

She doesn't want his pity? He was only trying to help... It's not like he knew what she was going through... how could he? But did she have to be so... Vicki? For lack of a better term? "Fine. But at least take the bed. You're not gonna get a good nights sleep on that."

"How would you know? I've slept on this just fine plenty of times!"

"No you haven't. Everytime you sleep over here you sleep in my bed. Usually by forcing me out of it."

"..."

"So now that I'm giving you the bed to sleep in, why not take it?"

"..."

"Just another way for you to make sure I keep my distance, right? Don't want me getting close?"

"Shut up." she whispered.

"Why don't you stop being stubborn for once in your life and let someone help you?"

"...Shut up." a bit more force, but still whispered.

"Or is it because it's me? It isn't about _someone_ helping you, it's about _me_ helping you, isn't it? That's why you pushed me away when my parents came home, and at the hospital..." Timmy fell silent and sat down in the recliner chair next to the couch. He couldn't make this about them, it was about her and her parents. She didn't need more stress right now, she didn't need to worry about his feelings for her or her lack of feelings for him. "Please take the bed? If not for me, then for yourself, so you can get some sleep?"

There was a full minute of silence before Vicki got up, wrapped the blanket around herself, and headed upstairs.

"Goodnight Vicki."

She responded by slamming the door to his room.

_The next morning..._

Timmy awoke and headed into the kitchen, silently thanking whoever, wherever that he didn't have school because it was Saturday.

His mother sat at the table in her bathrobe, a cup of coffee in front of her on the table and her cheeks still stained with tears. "Oh... Morning Timmy..."

"Hey Mom..." Timmy took a seat at the table, he wasn't feeling hungry for breakfast quite yet. Everything seemed so... out of place, like it wasn't yet real to him.

"That was very big of you, letting Vicki have your bed while you slept on the couch..."

"She needed to sleep comfortably more than I did."

Timmy heard the shower turn on upstairs.

"Vicki?"

"Yes." his mother took a sip from her cup of coffee. "Your father went to bring Tootie some clothes for when she is allowed to wear them. He'll be back after work."

"Okay... Have you... talked to Vicki today? Did she seem okay?"

"I think her brain is still trying to register all that has happened. She's... been acting very quiet this morning... Maybe you should talk to her? I'll bet she could use a friend right now..."

Sometimes it almost seemed like his parents were trying to push him closer to her; like they saw a relationship and understanding that wasn't really there. "I don't think I'm the person to do that..."

"Why not? You're her best friend."

"Tootie's her best friend, I'm..."

The sound of the shower being turned off echoed through the house.

"We're not on the best of terms right now..." Timmy looked down sadly. "She needs a friend... just not me."

"Why do you think that? If you gave her your bed last night, I should think that you two are close..."

What was he supposed to say? He was contradicting himself at every turn! Now wasn't the time to tell his parents that Vicki was evil, he'd be the lowest of the low for that and they more than likely wouldn't believe him anyway. But he couldn't follow his mother's advice either; being pushed away like he always was by her, this girl he had feelings of both adoration and resentment for... it was more than he wanted to put himself through. "I'll try talking to her today. But if she gets mad at me..."

"That's just something you'll have to look past, she's grieving right now, even if she won't show it."

"Right, I-" the kitchen door opened and in walked Vicki, hair still damp, wearing a green tank-top and black pajama pants. "M-morning Vicki... sleep okay?" he wasn't sure why he was nervous yet again, but he was.

She looked at him with indifference. "Fine." she then continued over to the cabinet, got out some cereal and poured it into a bowl, then went over to the fridge and poured milk into it, before sitting down at the table an equal distance from Timmy and his mom.

"Vicki? Did you thank Timmy for letting you use his bed?"

Vicki looked up, she had a mouthful of cereal and was in the middle of chewing it, though she stopped when Timmy's mother spoke to her.

"Ah... don't worry mom, she already did. It was the least I could do for my favorite babysitter!" _"How fake did that sound?"_

"Good. Oh shoot, I'm going to be late for work at this rate..." his mother stood up and left the room, then went upstairs.

The only sound in the kitchen was Vicki chewing her cereal, then swallowing. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"You said I thanked you... and that I was your favorite babysitter... Why?"

"Why not?"

"Don't start talking in riddles." Vicki pointed her spoon at him like it was a weapon. "Why are you covering for me? Why did you let me use your bed? Why did you hug me at the hospital? Why are you being _nice_ to me?"

Timmy looked at her through tired and still bruised eyes. An injury that his parents had failed to notice. "Who knows? I certainly don't." Timmy stood up and got himself a bowl of cereal. "Would you prefer that I treat you the way you treat me?"

Vicki watched him carefully. There had to be some ulterior motive to the way he was acting. He tried acting nice to her a few times, but this was the first time he actually attempted to look out for her. "I'd deserve it." Vicki returned to eating her cereal.

"Yes. You would." Timmy sat back down at the table and began eating as well.

"Hmph..." she would've had a witty retort, but her mouth was currently preoccupied with chewing the sugary cereal.

"But... I can't." Timmy took in another spoonful.

"What do you mean 'you can't'?"

Timmy chewed and swallowed before speaking. "Maybe what you said is true, I'm a coward, no spine, a loser... I can't bring myself to be that way towards you, guess I'm too weak."

"Self-deprecation? That's a new one. Yet you can lie to your mom and say that I'm a good person?"

"If I told her the truth... Either she believes me and you get in trouble and lose face with my parents; or she doesn't and my parents hate me even more for thinking I'm lying to them while you're going through this difficult time. It's a lose-lose situation."

"You're being melodramatic. Your parents don't hate you, they just don't really care about you like normal parents would."

"If you're trying to cheer me up, it's not working..."

"Fine then... So what did you mean by a 'lose-lose situation'?"

Timmy finished his cereal and stood up from the table. "If they think I'm lying, then I'd lose, wouldn't I?" he walked over to the dishwasher and put his bowl in.

"And if they did believe you? How would me getting in trouble be a loss?"

"I don't think I need to spell it out for you. I'm pretty sure I made it clear last night when I- ...Just before I went upstairs to clean the bathroom." Timmy left the kitchen and went up to his room, leaving Vicki to contemplate what he had said.

"_Last night..." _She remembered when she placed her hand on his cheek. _"Was that what he was talking about? ...Duh. Of course it was! He has a crush on me! I've been so preoccupied with all that's happened, I almost forgot!" _"I hope you don't think that I- that we-" Vicki was at a loss and lucky for her, Timmy had already moved upstairs and out of earshot.

Timmy opened the door to his room. Vicki's clothes were scattered about and his bed was messy and disheveled. "Looks like she made herself right at home..." it was somewhat unusual; Vicki generally left his room as she found it, though she rarely made the bed.

He moved to his dresser and got out a change of clothes. "Bet the hot water's gone by now..."

_KNOCK KNOCK_

"It's open..."

Timmy's mother entered his room. "Did you talk to Vicki, Timmy?"

"About what? If she doesn't want to talk to me about it, I'm not gonna pry." Timmy continued searching for his clothes.

"Sometimes the boy needs to step up in a relationship, just like other times when the girl needs to step up instead."

Timmy pulled one of his shirts out of the drawer and closed it; slightly more forcefully than he intended. "What are we talking about exactly?"

"Well... that is- … Your... relationship with Vicki? You two are... boyfriend and girlfriend... aren't you?"

How oblivious could his parents be? Apparently negative. In terms of obliviousness points, his parents were below zero and thought he had some sort of romance going on with Vicki, rather than having positive obliviousness points and simply not realizing there was a relationship. "No. We aren't. Vicki's my babysitter."

"But-"

"That's it."

"You two are... friends though, right?"

"_In the way that a predator is friends with its prey..." _"Ask her. I really don't know..."

"Sorry! No time!" his mother walked over and kissed him on the cheek. "Your father and I should be back by around eight, dinner's in the fridge, take care!" he watched his mother quickly leave his room, then heard the muffled sounds of her reciting an oddly similar farewell to Vicki.

"Wow. I haven't gotten that much of a fond farewell in... six years." Timmy shook his head and made for the bathroom.

_Downstairs..._

"Vicki... um... your- the funeral for your parents is tomorrow at noon." Timmy's mother watched as Vicki seemed to take the news without breaking down into tears and continued. "I... assume you'll want to go, right?"

"...Yes."

"Um... okay... Do you have clothes that are... appropriate for that?"

Exactly what kind of clothes are appropriate to wear at your parents' funeral? Most of what she wore was fairly similar... "I'll find something, thanks."

"Okay then... if you need anything, Timmy will probably be here all day... My husband and I should be back around eight..."

"_Already said that."_

"We'll see you then! Just take it easy for now, alright?"

"I'm fine Mrs. Turner, really." she _really_ wasn't, but she didn't need someone fawning all over her all day. She watched as the woman left and drove away in her car.

Vicki heard the shower turn on upstairs. _"Must be the Twerp... he needs a cold shower after that stunt last night..."_ Vicki left the kitchen and went upstairs to her- Timmy's room, then went in and laid down under the covers. She didn't feel like doing anything today. Not messing with Timmy, not watching TV, not _anything_; just staying in her- _his_ room and sleeping...

Then the door opened and Timmy walked in and sat on his bed, causing her to bounce slightly and turn over to look at him. "What are you doing?"

Timmy jumped slightly at hearing her voice and turned his head to look at her. "Um... sitting on my bed? Getting dressed?"

"I was trying to sleep." Vicki turned back over to look at the wall.

"Sorry, but it _is_ still _my_ bed. Did you sleep okay?"

"I told you already: Fine. Wanna ask again in fifteen minutes?"

"I figured you just said that because my mom was there..."

"I. Slept. Fine." she was quickly becoming annoyed.

"So... are you just gonna sleep in all day?"

"I'm sorry, I thought I might have that right since my parents just died!" she turned back over and snapped at him.

"I didn't mean- I was going to go and visit Tootie, see how she's doing... I thought you might want to come..." he had unintentionally pushed her too hard, despite his best efforts to stay on her good side. "I'm sorry if-"

"Just forget it. Let's go." she threw the blanket off herself and grabbed some clothes from her backpack, then left the room for the bathroom.

Timmy waited in his room for a few minutes until Vicki came back in.

"Are you coming or not?"

"Just waiting for you..." Timmy said sadly.

They left the house and walked to the bus stop, then got on. Vicki got on first and looked around, the bus was packed. There were only two open seats; right next to each other. She huffed in annoyance and sat down. Timmy walked over and stood next to her seat.

"What are you doing _now_?!" she whispered up at him.

"I figured... you wouldn't want me to sit next to you, so..." Timmy glanced around.

"You look weird standing up next to an open seat!" Vicki yanked him down to sit next to her.

Timmy let himself be pulled down and sat rigid in his seat. Now she was toying with him, she had to be. She was just waiting for him to get too comfortable, to think that-

His thought process was interrupted by Vicki as she looped her arm around his and leaned into him.

"Um..." Timmy looked down at Vicki nervously as she rested her head on his shoulder.

She began to whisper, apparently noticing his confounded expression. "Don't get any ideas, Twerp. It's easier for me to do this than to have to deal with all the damn creepers on this bus hitting on me. Just- think about those fantasies you have of us being boyfriend and girlfriend, shouldn't be too hard for you, since you can't help but think about me..."

Again, she insulted him, and again, she was using him for her own benefit. He wanted to tear his arm away and look for another seat... But as usual, he couldn't. She needed someone to lean on, both literally and figuratively, and he wanted to be that person, he couldn't deny it. So even if it was fake and she'd push him away when they got off the bus... he wouldn't be cruel to her.

As Timmy predicted, when they got off the bus, Vicki separated herself from him and made sure there was a good six inches of space between them at all times as they walked the rest of the way to the hospital and went inside.

The two teens walked over to the reception desk to find that the girl from the night before was still working the desk. "Oh. Hey... Mr. ...Valentine?"

Vicki looked at Timmy with a bemused expression.

"Your sister's doing okay today. Some guy stopped by and dropped off some clothes for her."

"Some guy?" Vicki asked with a hint of worry.

"Yeah... Mr. Turner? I think that's what he said his name was. Anyway, you and..."

"Vicki. I'm Tootie's older sister."

"Wow. Three kids... I'm sorry about your parents... I would've said it yesterday, but it was a long night, just... slipped my mind."

"Thank you." Timmy spoke up and walked with Vicki over to the elevator.

Once the doors were closed, Vicki turned to look at Timmy. "So you're going by Timmy Valentine now?"

"It was just to get past her last night. I didn't expect her to be working here again this morning."

"Well that was some quick thinking, 'bro'." Vicki stuck up her hands and made air quotes.

"Thanks 'sis', I thought so too." Timmy mimicked her use of air quotes.

And then it happened. Vicki giggled at his antics. It was only for a few seconds, but it was something to suggest that she wasn't in complete despair like she was the night before. "Please. I'd go nuts if you were my brother."

"Likewise."

Arriving at Tootie's room, Timmy and Vicki found her to be awake and sitting up, eating breakfast.

"Tootie?"

Tootie looked up from her food. "You guys came back! I- well, you'll have to forgive me for not standing up to greet you."

"Very funny." Vicki deadpanned, but looked genuinely relieved. "So what'd the doctor say?"

Tootie sighed. "That I'll probably be in here for at least another week and even once I'm released, I'll have to take it easy for a while. He said something about internal injuries, but I guess they patched me up pretty well..."

"My uh... my dad stopped by to drop off some clothes for you... did you get them?"

"Yeah, he was here about a half an hour ago, thanks Timmy."

"How are you holding up besides having to eat terrible food?" Timmy asked with a grin.

"It's not _that_ bad... but I am missing Vicki's awful cooking right about now..." Tootie smiled at her sister.

"_You_ can cook?!" Timmy looked at Vicki with disbelief.

"No." Tootie deadpanned. "That's why I said awful..."

"I didn't come here to get picked on by my _little_ sister." Vicki flicked Tootie's nose.

"Ah! Hey... I'm injured... you have to be nice to me..." Tootie said in a pouting voice.

"You're well enough to insult my cooking though, right?"

"Maybe you should take some cooking classes or something..."

"Alright, I'm gonna tell the nurse that you're ready to come home. Clearly if you're well enough to fight with me, you're well enough to not need to stay in the hospital." Vicki got out of her chair and made for the door.

"Vicki! Wait!" Tootie giggled. "I was just messing around!"

Vicki came back and folded her arms over her chest. "Oh? Well, I guess if you were just messing around..." Vicki came over and sat down next to Tootie's hospital bed, her happy smile making way for a more reserved expression. "I'm staying at the Twerp's for now... But a worker will be coming over in the next couple days to figure out where we're gonna live..."

"But... are we gonna be separated? We can still live together, right?"

"I don't know... those workers... they aren't exactly known for having peoples' best interests at heart. I hope we can stay together..."

"So we could end up living in different foster homes?"

Timmy watched the conversation between the two sisters. It felt like everything was falling apart all over again. He had seen Vicki at her lowest... at least, that was the lowest he had seen her. He hoped she couldn't get more miserable than that. But now he was afraid Tootie would break down like Vicki had.

"We... No. If they do that, we'll run away. I won't let them keep me from seeing my only sister. All we have is each other now..."

"And Timmy."

Timmy felt warmth in his chest at hearing this. Vicki might not particularly like him and definitely used him, but Tootie trusted him without a second thought.

Vicki pulled away from Tootie and looked at her upon hearing this.

"What?" Tootie looked at her, confusion evident on her face. "Vicki... don't be like that. Timmy's my best friend..."

"I thought I was your best friend?"

"That's different. You're my sister, so of course you're my best friend, but so is Timmy. What have you got against him anyway?"

"What have I got against him?! He-" _"What do I have against him?"_ "He's... a pervert! And a coward!"

"Literally standing right here." Timmy added in.

"That's stupid. You're stupid." Tootie deadpanned at her sister. "Timmy's not a pervert and he certainly isn't a coward."

Part of Timmy was touched that Tootie was standing up for him and part of him felt guilty because she was technically wrong on both accounts. "Could you guys not fight? It's been a rough day for everyone, why don't-"

"Everyone?!" Vicki snapped at him. "Don't act like it was _your_ parents that died! You have no idea what this is like for either of us, you try to be all sympathetic, but your parents are still around! So don't you dare act like you know what we're going through! I don't need you and neither does Tootie!" she continued to glare at him coldly for several seconds before wiping her eyes and turning back towards Tootie, who just looked at her in shock.

"Fine. I guess I screwed up again by thinking that you might need a friend. I'll be in the hospital restaurant if you need me... not like you will..." Timmy walked out of the room and shut the door.

"Hmph... acting like he understands us..."

Tootie could only look at her sister with disappointment. "What is wrong with you?"

"What?! Me?! What about-"

"Timmy? He's trying his best to be there for both of us! Why do you treat him like crap all the time?!"

"Trying his best? Hah! He'll have to try a lot harder to even approach 'good', nevermind 'best'! That Twerp is just a coward and an idiot!"

"Stop! Just stop it right now! What have you got against him, seriously? Is it because he likes you?"

"How- how do you know about-"

"Like it isn't obvious... I saw you two last night."

"He forced me into-"

"Oh get real! You could've pushed him away if you wanted to! Hell, you just did! Mom and Dad thought of him as part of our family, you know that! The least you could do is respect their wishes and treat him the way he treats us!"

"Grr... what do you know?!"

"I _know_ that Timmy has never been mean to either one of us. I know that he's my best friend, and I know _why_ you always push him away!"

"Oh? Pray tell. I _really _want to hear this."

"You- ...No. I think- I don't have to tell you. You already know."

"Now you're going to talk in riddles like him?! Ugh... great."

"Vicki, I'm too tired to keep up a fight with you for long, let's just drop it for now... And go apologize to Timmy!"

"Nope. Not doing that."

"I'm not asking. We're hurting that mom and dad are gone, but they treated him better than his parents ever have. Don't you think that maybe this is bothering him more than you realize?"

"So what? I'm the bad guy here?"

"..."

"..."

"Yeah."

"Whatever. Fine, I'll go make sure the Twerp isn't crying his eyes out."

"Good, come back when you're done."

"If you're lucky." Vicki left Tootie's room and headed for the elevator. Last she checked, the restaurant was on the first floor.

After taking the elevator down and wandering around looking for signs that said 'restaurant' for a half hour, Vicki finally found it and looked around. There weren't many people in the restaurant and Vicki spied Timmy almost immediately. His pink hat giving him away. She approached his table and sat down in front of him. "Hey."

Timmy sipped from his water bottle, not bothering to look at her.

"Didn't we have a conversation last night about you ignoring me?"

Timmy sighed, but didn't say anything.

"Are you gonna keep being annoying like this?"

"Are _you_ going to keep using me whenever you want? We're friends, then we're enemies. You're nice to me, then you treat me like garbage." Timmy looked at her, his eyes looking far better than they did before, yet were somewhat red, like he had been crying or on the verge of crying. "You want me to comfort you... you push me away..." Timmy whispered now.

"I don't want you to comf-"

"Don't. If you didn't want someone to comfort you, you would've pushed me away everytime. You take those self-defense classes or whatever, I know you're strong enough to push me away if you want to."

He had caught her this time. If she really did want to be left alone, she would've pushed him away. "If you're wanting... me and you to become... 'us', it isn't going to happen."

"Then you really should stop coming to me for comfort. You can't do something like wrap your arm around mine and lean into me like you care about me and then expect me to not feel something!"

"I already told you, it doesn't mean anything! I don't _need_ you! I just-" Vicki wasn't sure how to proceed. Sure, she was hurting, but what Tootie said was obviously true, Timmy was hurting as well. And she wasn't making it any easier by faking her affections toward him. She certainly wasn't going to make it easier by telling him that she was only using him. "This isn't the place to discuss this, let's go back and see Tootie for now, we'll talk about it later."

"I see we're still favoring procrastination..."

"In about two seconds I'm going to favor inflicting grievous bodily harm." Vicki stood up from the table, followed by Timmy.

_Back in Tootie's room..._

"We're back!"

"Everything okay?" Tootie didn't completely trust her sister's upbeat attitude.

"Yep! Just fine!"

Timmy made a non-committal noise.

"Hm... Doc came by while you guys were downstairs. He said I should be able to leave in a few days."

"That's good, I'm sure you wanna get out of here as soon as possible..." Vicki sat back down in the chair next to Tootie's bed. "Um... Mom and Dads' funeral is tomorrow..."

"Oh..."

"Yeah..."

"You're going then?"

"Seems wrong not to, don't ya think?"

"Who else is going? Mom and Dad didn't really have too many people that knew them in Dimmsdale..."

"I'm sure the Twerp's family is going. I'll be okay..."

"That's good... ugh... this medication they gave me is-" Tootie yawned and covered her mouth. "Making me sleepy... As much fun as I'm sure it is to watch me sleep, you guys should probably take off..."

"You sure? We've only been here for about an hour..."

"It's alright."

"Well... okay. Hope you feel better soon and like I said, no one is keeping us apart."

"Thanks Vicki. Mind if I talk to Timmy real quick?"

"I... guess so..." Vicki stayed near the bed and looked at Timmy.

"Vicki. I meant... alone?"

"Oh! Um... right. I'll be right outside the door if you need me." Vicki left the room, leaving just Timmy and Tootie.

"So what's up Toots?"

"Ugh... that nickname again? How would you like it if I called you Twerp?"

"Well..." Timmy smiled as he sat down in the chair next to Tootie's bed. "I _am_ taller than you. You're more of a Twerp to me than I am to you." Timmy grabbed Tootie's hand and laced his fingers with hers. "I'm really glad you're okay..."

"You and me both. How... did it go? With Vicki I mean."

"About as well as could be expected..." the smile on Timmy's face faded. "My parents keep telling me to be there for her, but she's making it pretty clear that she doesn't want-" Timmy trailed off and sighed.

"So... I'm gonna go ahead and assume you like Vicki?" she knew, but wanted confirmation from him all the same.

Timmy looked up at Tootie and shushed her. "Like it matters anyway. She made it pretty clear downstairs that she doesn't like me."

"Maybe she just doesn't like you _that_ way?"

"I meant at all."

"Well... Vicki can definitely be... abrasive at times... But I don't think she hates you..."

"No, I think hate is a good word for her feelings towards me."

"I'm sure your parents have already told you about how 'she's going through a tough time' and all that, but Vicki likes to keep up her tough girl image. It's why she's never had a boyfriend. She doesn't want to seem like she needs to depend on people; and it's only going to get worse now that... Mom and Dad are gone..." Tootie looked down at her free hand and tightened her grip on the edge of the blanket.

"How are you handling that?"

"I'm alright. The doctors asked if I wanted to see a therapist... I told them no. I've got you, Vicki, and the rest of my friends to help me through it... But..."

"But?"

"Vicki won't talk to me about it. Aside from when she told me... The news hasn't come up again."

"If you're gonna say the same thing my parents said, you can save it. She doesn't need me, she's made that perfectly clear several times over."

"She needs a friend, Timmy."

"She'll have to find someone else. Do you think I deserve to be used? To be beaten down by her insults? To be pushed away when all I want is-"

"For her to like you. Like you like her. And to be there for her."

"You always were the most perceptive of our little group..."

"It's the glasses."

"Right." Timmy laughed along with Tootie.

Tootie stretched and yawned again. "Well, you two should probably be hitting the old, dusty trail. If... if we don't see each other again..."

"Don't talk like that. I'll- I'll think of something. We won't be separated, even if we all have to run away together."

"You serious about that?"

"Only if there's no other choice. I'm hoping it won't come to that, but it's good to have a last resort, right?"

"Heh... yeah..." Tootie took off her glasses and wiped her eyes.

"Ah... don't start crying... you're gonna get me started..." Timmy blushed and wiped at his currently dry eyes.

"Sorry. It's just... how far we've come, from me chasing you to try and get you to like me, to being best friends... and now, we're talking about running away together... you're like the brother I never had..."

Timmy leaned over to Tootie and pulled her into a hug. "I know. Would it be cliché if I said I felt the same?"

"Very."

"I feel the same."

"I'm like the brother you never had?"

Timmy rolled his eyes at Tootie's poor joke attempt. "Yes, that's exactly what I meant."

"I thought so."

"'Kay, I'll be back tomorrow." Timmy pulled away from Tootie. "Try to get some rest so you can get better."

"I will. Try not to kill my sister... or be killed by her."

"No promises." Timmy waved bye to Tootie and left her room. Vicki was just outside, sitting in one of the waiting area chairs.

"God that took forever. You two proclaim your undying love for each other or something?"

Timmy ignored her comment and walked past her. She was just trying to get a rise out of him, there was no reason for him to play her-

"Hey! This 'ignorance is bliss' shit is getting on my nerves!" Vicki grabbed his shoulder and spun him around to look at her. "I'm still your babysitter and I'm not about to tolerate you ignoring me!"

Timmy looked at her tiredly. "What do you want from me? Seems that everything I say is liable to set you off, yet if I try to leave you be, I'm still screwing up. Can't we just be peaceful with each other?"

"I-" Vicki released him and studied his face. He looked tired, depressed... defeated even. And she was once again at a loss for what to say, she could've told him 'no', that they couldn't, but that seemed harsh, even for her. "I don't see how that will accomplish anything, but fine." Vicki walked past him and made her way to the elevator. "Coming?"

"Yeah..." he followed her into the elevator, then outside and over to the bus stop, wondering if the bus ride back to his house would play out similarly to the last.

As he got onto the bus, he noticed it was much less crowded than the last time and opted to sit near the back, away from Vicki.

This plan did not play out as expected, but then again, nothing did if Vicki was around. As he took his seat, he saw Vicki give him an annoyed look, then get out of her seat and walk over to his and sit down next to him.

"Plenty of other seats on the bus..."

"But only one right next to you." she said sweetly, _far_ too sweetly. Her favorite act for people. Sweet little angel Vicki.

Timmy leaned his head against the bus window as Vicki leaned her head into his shoulder. "There's barely anyone on the bus, who do you think is going to hit on you? That old guy?" Timmy pointed to a very old-looking gentleman who looked to be on the verge of death.

"I'm not taking any chances, besides, I know you like this. Would've pushed me away by now if you didn't."

"Do _you _like it?" he wasn't sure why, but he suddenly felt more confident. He never would have normally been so direct in asking her about her affections toward him, but for all the times she pushed him, he was going to push her... If only a little.

"...What?" it was a hesitant 'what', like she had to think for a few seconds for her brain to come up with it.

Timmy moved his head from leaning on the bus window to resting his cheek on the top of her head, then looped the arm whose shoulder she was resting on around her shoulders. "You know that _I_ like it, at least, you claim that you know, so I was wondering... do _you_ like it?"

Vicki glanced up at him almost fearfully. Almost. But mostly just angrily. "What the Hell are you doing?!" she was whispering to keep up appearances.

"Same thing you're doing." Timmy shrugged. "I'd hate for any of the creepers on the bus to hit on me."

"When I said that we could try being peaceful with each other, I didn't mean that you could take advantage of the situation..." Timmy couldn't see her face, but the tone of her voice suggested she was blushing.

"Who's taking advantage? You like making me feel like we have something, so I'm just going with it."

"_Now_ you feel like growing a spine?"

"You're the one who decided to sit next to me."

"I didn't ask you to put your arm around me..."

"_I_ didn't ask you to act like we're together."

"I already told you that 'us' isn't happening..."

"Then why do you keep coming to me for comfort?"

"I'm not!"

"Sure seems like you are. You said that you did this to keep people from hitting on you, but there's no one who's going to hit on you on the bus, so why are you really sitting next to me?"

"Why are _you_ complaining about a pretty girl sitting next to you?"

"I'm not complaining." Timmy rubbed his cheek against the top of her head and pulled Vicki a bit closer. _"I'm just giving you a taste of what you do to me."_

"Stop being weird!" Vicki whispered louder but did not push him away.

"You didn't answer my question."

"I don't need a reason to sit next to you! I'm your babysitter!"

"...Perhaps not, but why do you insist on doing... this?"

"Because- ..."

"Is the thought of you and me really that bad? Everyone else thinks we're together or that we like each other, why do you keep pushing me away?"

Vicki didn't answer, instead pulling the string to notify the driver that they were at their stop. "Here we are." the bus stopped and the doors opened. Vicki lingered next to Timmy for a few seconds before getting up and moving to get off.

Timmy watched her walk off, quickly realizing(though he already knew he would) that he missed her presence and followed after her. He was beginning to feel how he assumed Tootie felt back when she pined after him and he brushed her off. Except he never led Tootie along the way Vicki was leading him along. Timmy told Tootie that he wasn't interested in a relationship with her; whereas Vicki was constantly sending him mixed signals.

He got off the bus and saw that she was already walking up the walkway toward his house. She didn't wait for him this time and let herself in, then shut the door behind her.

"Nice..." Timmy opened the door to find Vicki laying on the couch; her jacket discarded on the nearby recliner. "I'll be in my room." Timmy moved and began ascending the stairs.

"Wait!"

Timmy stopped and looked at her quizzically. "Yeah?"

"Um... I mean... do you want to... watch TV? With... me?" she blushed as she waited for his answer.

"Why?" Timmy asked with a bored expression.

"Why not?" it wasn't much of a retort.

"Because me spending time with you usually ends with me receiving bodily or emotional harm."

"What about on the bus just now? You-"

"What about it? You keep saying that it's not gonna happen, no matter how much I may like you, you don't like me. You practically freaked at me for putting my arm around your shoulders... I wanted you to see how it felt. To think that someone might care about you, only to be pushed away a second later, but like I said before, I can't... be like you."

"Be like me? The Hell does that mean?"

"Mean. Heartless. I can't treat people like garbage like you do."

"Like garbage?! How is me asking you if you want to watch TV with me treating you like garbage?"

"I don't mean just now! I mean everything ever! Nearly all of our interactions end with you telling me I'm a coward, a loser, or a pervert! If you're going to keep treating me like crap, don't expect me to be there for you next time!"

"I'm trying to be nice, like you suggested! Now get down here or I'll... I'll tell your parents that _I_ did all the chores! See how they'll take that!"

"_Of course she'd go there..."_ Timmy walked back down the stairs, threw his coat onto Vicki's, and sat down next to her on the couch.

"...What do you wanna watch?"

"I don't care..."

"Good, I can watch ponies talk about friendship and love." Vicki smirked evilly at him and picked up the remote.

"Bye." Timmy stood up and made for the stairs again.

"Oh come on! I'm just kidding!"

Timmy hesitated and looked over his shoulder, then returned to his spot on the couch.

Vicki changed the channel to some horror movie that came out a few years back. "This okay?"

"I told you; I don't care. You're blackmailing me so I stay down here, remember?"

Vicki didn't respond to this and instead turned the volume up. "This movie still scare you?"

"Well I'm fourteen. So no. Is that why you put it on? To scare me?"

"I put it on because it's the only thing to watch. I can scare you just fine in plenty of other ways."

"Hmph..." Timmy leaned on his elbow and watched the movie with a look of extreme boredom on his face.

Vicki occasionally stole a glance at him and sighed. After several of these she huffed in annoyance and turned to him fully. "Why is it that now that I'm trying to be nice, you just wanna act like a jerk?"

"I have no idea. It's almost like all those times you've been mean to me and teased me have finally sunk in to make me realize what kind of a person you really are." his voice dripped with sarcasm. "You think that might be it?"

"It's not like I-"

"Don't bother finishing that sentence. You haven't tried. You're either insulting me, or using me. That encompasses our interactions. I've tried to be nice, I've tried to understand you. You lost your parents, the only family you've ever known. You _almost_ lost Tootie; your sister and best friend. I get that. I'll admit that I can't understand how you feel since it hasn't happened to me, but what I don't need is for you to... to make me feel the way I do, then just shut me out. So tell me how it is."

"What? How _what_ is?" she was asking because she really didn't know... or because she didn't want to admit what he was trying to get her to admit.

"Whatever we are... to each other. I _need_ to know. Tell me so I can finally move on with my life, please."

She hated how he sounded when he asked like that. He sounded so... _needy_. It was annoying to her, not just because of how pathetic he sounded, but also because it made her feel bad. For _him_ of all people. She looked around; there was no one watching them. It was just him and her, alone in the house.

Vicki scooted closer to him and Timmy's eyes widened slightly. "V-Vicki?"

Vicki didn't say anything, but moved closer and leaned into him again, like on the bus, then looped her arm around his waist. "I don't know." she whispered it; almost as if she was afraid someone besides the two of them would hear it.

Unfortunately, she was so quiet that Timmy didn't even hear it. "What?"

"I said I don't know. I know I push you away all the time... And... and it must make you feel horrible... But... I don't want you to think-"

She stopped as she felt Timmy put his arm around her again. Her eyes met his and he looked as though he was worried. Worried that he had made some sort of mistake and ruined things between them.

"I... what I said in the restaurant at the hospital... I didn't mean it. I know you like me and I- I don't want you to _not_ like me... If that makes any sense."

"_Not really..."_

"I don't want a relationship with someone because... I have so little to lose, yet so much, y'know?"

"You mean... your family, right?"

"Yeah... all I've got left is Tootie. But I don't want to risk a relationship only to get hurt..."

"You won't let me in..."

"I know. I'm so used to pushing people away, especially you... I guess... I'm not a very good person. I want to try though! I am trying... right?"

"Threatening to tell my parents that I didn't do my chores and you did all the work doesn't exactly help your case..."

"I'm sorry. That wasn't right... I just couldn't think of anything to say that would make you stay down here."

"Please would've worked."

"...Have we met? Evidently not, after you saying that."

A sigh escaped Timmy's lips.

"Do... you really like me?" Vicki asked suddenly.

"I haven't made it obvious enough yet?"

"I need some time. To think."

"_Isn't that always the case?" _"So... you maybe like me?"

"Maybe... I don't hate you, how's that?"

"..."

"Yeah, that's what I thought..." Vicki turned her attention away from Timmy and back to the movie. "You can have your bed back. I've taken it from you enough times..." Vicki felt Timmy's grip on her tighten a little.

"You need it more than I do right now. Long as you're here, I want you to have it."

"A-are you sure? You can't just sleep on the couch all the time! You'll hurt your back or something..."

"I'll manage. Wouldn't be right to have you sleep on the couch after what you've been through."

"Thanks..."

The rest of the day went along quietly. Timmy and Vicki spent most of it semi-cuddling on the couch, only stopping to eat lunch or get a snack, then tentatively returning to their previous positions. Neither teen talked much; afraid that their quiet understanding they had reached might be shattered by a single misspoken word.

Eventually, Vicki saw the headlights from Timmy's mother's car and gave him an apologetic look before moving away from him and sliding over to her side of the couch. It wasn't about her not liking PDAs, it was more about not wanting them to think they were together; which they weren't. An afternoon leaning against each other on the couch does not a relationship make.

"I'm home!" Timmy's mother happily exclaimed as she opened the front door. "Everything okay here?"

"Yeah, everything's fine, mom."

"That's good. Vicki? Did you find something to wear for..." her expression visibly saddened.

"I did." she didn't, but it wouldn't be hard to find something before noon tomorrow.

"Okay then. It's been a long day, I'm going to go up and take a shower, then go to bed. Goodnight you two."

"Night mom."

"Goodnight Mrs. Turner."

Timmy and Vicki watched as Timmy's mother went up the stairs and disappeared out of sight; then returned to watching TV. Timmy missed the closeness they had been sharing earlier, but knew that the chances of Vicki cuddling up to him were almost nil now that his mother was home, soon to be followed by his father. "You... should probably get to bed. It's- it'll probably be a rough day for you tomorrow..."

"I suppose it will..." Vicki stood and walked over to the stairs. "Goodnight Twerp."

"Still a Twerp, huh?"

"Always." she smirked at him, then was out of sight up the stairs.

Timmy laid down on the couch and pulled the blanket over himself. He fell asleep after a few minutes.

* * *

><p>AN2: Also, if anyone is wondering why my stories have a tendency to fall by the wayside for extended periods of time... It's because I'm the type of person who gets an idea from my muse and _needs_ to start typing it or writing it down, if I don't, it'll be lost forever. That's why one-shots and two-shots tend to take precedence over my longer stories.


	3. Chapter 3

Timmy awoke to the sound of high-heeled shoes clopping on the floor above him. Likely his mother; Vicki didn't seem the type to wear them.

"You're finally up."

Timmy jumped at hearing the voice, thinking he was the only one in the living room. He turned over to see Vicki sitting in the recliner chair; wearing black jeans and a semi-long black cotton coat with big black buttons on it that reached just above her knees. Her hair was up in her favored ponytail style. "Your eyes are looking a lot better today. Can barely tell you got punched." she was leaning over him now, eyes focused on his.

"Time is it?" Timmy asked as he stretched.

"Yuck! Time for you to go brush your teeth! Talk about morning breath... Also ten."

"Ten? Ugh... I overslept." Timmy got off the couch and made for the stairs, but stopped and turned back to Vicki. "I know I've asked this several times now, so you're probably getting sick of hearing it, but... are you okay? Especially today?"

Vicki's face fell and she looked as if all her energy was suddenly drained away. "Can you ever be okay going to your parents' funeral?"

"I... suppose not. Sorry."

"...Just- let's try not to be... y'know."

He knew what she meant. She didn't want his affections today; or at least, not at the funeral in front of everybody.

"Alright. If it gets too hard for you... just remember that I'm here, okay?"

"I know... You should go get ready." Vicki slumped back down in the recliner and Timmy made his way upstairs and into his room. It was still a mess and the bed was unmade again, but he was okay with that. It _was_ her room, at least for now.

Timmy pulled open his dresser drawers and searched for some more suitable clothes. A pink shirt and blue jeans didn't seem to be proper attire for a funeral. After several minutes of searching, he found a black shirt and dark blue jeans. "Better than pink..." Timmy left his room and went into the bathroom to shower.

_Downstairs..._

Vicki made her way into the kitchen and sat down at the table. She didn't even feel like eating breakfast, her stomach felt like it was tight and ready to send any food she ate back up at any moment. She couldn't cry anymore, Tootie needed her to be strong and she needed to be strong for herself. Hopefully she'd have enough time after the worker came to figure out what she and Tootie were going to do. Being separated from Tootie wasn't an option, that much was clear. If the worker sent them to the same house... that would be preferable... but they still might have to run away. She didn't need or want new parents and who knew if her foster parents would even care about them? No... Tootie and her might need to run away no matter what.

"_But... where would we even go? I can handle living on the street, but Tootie? She needs time to recover... What am I gonna do? Find an old abandoned house to live in? Winter would be Hell on both of us... What was I thinking? Telling her we'd run away..."_

The door between the living room and kitchen opened and Timmy walked in, now wearing a dark gray coat over his black shirt and blue jeans. "Hope this is okay..."

Vicki looked him up and down. "I don't think your choice of outfit will insult my parents."

Was that a joke? He wasn't sure and didn't laugh, just in case, then sat down opposite her at the table. "Does this seem... weird to you?"

"What?"

"Us? Getting along?"

"A little. We're normally so abrasive toward each other, me more than you. I don't expect everything to suddenly take a turn and for us to never fight again and you shouldn't either."

"Why not?"

"Because that's not how these things work. We _are_ going to fight. There's no getting around it."

"We don't have to..."

"It's never that easy, Twerp. People don't change overnight and I definitely don't."

"Especially if they don't try."

She glared at him. "Don't start this early, I can't deal with it right now..."

"I-"

Timmy's mother burst through the door. "Are you two almost ready?"

"Yeah, whenever you and dad are ready."

His mother was back to her old self and far too upbeat for someone who was about to go to a funeral. "Okay, just making sure." his mother went back out the way she came.

Vicki watched her leave then turned back to Timmy. "She always like that?"

"You've spent enough time around her to know. Nothing fazes her for long..."

"Timmy, Vicki! It's time to go!" Timmy's father called from the living room.

Timmy stood up from the kitchen table and walked by Vicki. "Shall we?"

"We shall..." Vicki stood up and walked past him, but stopped when she felt resistance. He was holding her hand, keeping her from going through the door. "What?"

"I know you don't want us to be... 'us' in front of my parents and whoever else is going to be there... but... um... If it becomes too much-"

"I know." Vicki pulled Timmy into a shaky hug. It may have been _her_ parents that were gone, but Timmy was hurting from this as well. She felt him tentatively return the gesture. "C'mon, let's go." Vicki pulled away, but held his hand as she pulled away for a few more seconds, then released it.

Timmy gave a small smile at the gesture. It was nice to know that she cared about him, even if she wouldn't say it with her words.

Timmy and Vicki followed his parents out to the car and got in.

"Is everyone all set?" Timmy's mother looked at the two teens from the rear view mirror.

"Yes Mom. We're all set." Timmy rolled his eyes at his mother.

"Just making sure!"

The drive to the funeral home was fairly quiet, aside from his mother asking Vicki if she was okay far too many times. He could tell that she was quickly becoming annoyed, she was already annoyed when he asked her earlier.

"Mom!" Timmy raised his voice slightly. "You've been asking that question every ten minutes for the past hour! You can stop now..."

"Oh... Um... maybe you're right. Sorry Vicki. I just want to make sure you're alright..."

"I'm fine, thank you Mrs. Turner."

Timmy heard Vicki's voice crack as she spoke. She definitely wasn't okay now, but he knew better than to try and comfort her now. She may have admitted that she wanted him to be there for her(in her own way), but he wanted to be careful. Part of him wanted to prove her wrong; prove that they didn't have to fight.

The sky was overcast as they entered the funeral home. It seemed that while Vicki was suppressing her tears, the sky was just barely holding back.

More people attended the funeral than Vicki had expected would. Old friends of her family that she hadn't seen in years, friends of Timmy's family that she didn't even know... Even Chester and AJ and their families, though she guessed they probably showed up because Timmy did, or because they thought Tootie would.

She was surprised by how her parents looked; were it not for the fact that they were in coffins, one would think they were just sleeping... Despite this, Vicki kept her distance from them, opting not to kneel down in front of them and instead standing near Timmy's family. It was hard enough for her to keep her composure; she didn't need to add more stress to it.

She was glad Tootie wasn't here; Tootie likely would've broken down and started crying and Vicki would've followed shortly after. In fact, Timmy's mother was the one crying, odd considering she barely knew Vicki's parents.

"_Guess I know where the Twerp gets his more emotional side from..."_ She heard a sniffle from her left and looked to see it was the Twerp himself. _"__Ah jeez... don't start tearing up..."_

Almost as if he heard her thoughts, Timmy wiped his eyes and was back to normal.

"_Good."_

After the funeral, Timmy's parents drove Timmy and Vicki back to the house.

"Vicki, we're going to go take care of the paperwork... the social worker called while we were at the funeral home, he should be over around four o'clock... I don't think he'll be taking you to wherever you're supposed to live today, but you should probably get your things ready, just in case..." Timmy's parents left once again, leaving just Timmy and Vicki in the house. Alone. Once again.

"Um-"

"I'm gonna take a shower." Vicki quickly walked over to the stairs and went up them.

"Okay... um... I'll be here. Just call down if you need anything, alright?"

Vicki didn't answer him as she disappeared out of sight.

"_O...kay..." _something didn't feel right. She had suddenly become very distant, she was surely depressed, but... could the news about the social worker be bothering her that much? Yes, it very well could be...

He heard the sound of the shower being turned on.

But... it took him six years to become civil with her and she was so hard to figure out... Saying or doing the wrong thing now could send him right back to square one...

There was a crashing sound from upstairs.

"Vicki?!" Timmy ran up the stairs and tried opening the bathroom door. "Vicki? You okay in there? Open the door!"

"I'm fine. Leave me alone..." her voice was devoid of emotion.

"What was that crash?"

"The mirror."

"You... you broke the mirror?"

"Yep."

"Why?"

"Needed... something sharp."

"Sharp? ...Vicki?! Open the door!" Timmy put his weight into the door and pushed, then charged it with his shoulder to no avail. "Dammit! Open the door! Please!"

"Go away... I'll be done in a second..."

Timmy stepped back from the door. _"Shit... Shitshitshit!" _He turned to his room and entered, then began searching through his desk drawer until he found what he was looking for: a small pair of scissors with thin shears. "I really hope this works..." he returned to the bathroom doors and jammed the scissors in the keyhole. It was only a simple lock, so he figured he wouldn't have too much trouble... After a few seconds of fiddling, Timmy heard the lock click and turned the knob, throwing the door open, he found Vicki standing in front of the now broken mirror, a sharp piece of glass in her right hand, held dangerously close to her left wrist.

Without even thinking, Timmy sprang forward and grabbed her right wrist. "Stop!"

Vicki looked at him through tired and unfeeling eyes. "I told you I'd be done in a second..."

"What the fuck... Don't- don't do this..." Timmy held her wrist tightly, keeping the large mirror shard just out of reach of her wrist.

"Why not? Not much point in living now... My parents are gone, I'll be separated from Tootie... I can't put myself or her through that..."

"You'd rather kill yourself and put her through losing you instead?!"

Vicki shifted the shard in her hand and looked at her reflection. The action causing small rivulets of blood to stream down from where the shard was cutting her palm and fingers. "Better for her to experience a quick type of sadness than to always wonder about how I'm doing, she'd never be able to handle it. I won't put her through constant pain like that."

"Wh-what about running away together? We said we'd do that if it came down to it!" Timmy pulled her wrist slightly, doing anything he could to keep the mirror shard from cutting her more.

"Get real! You think three teenagers could survive out there?! What would we do in winter? Huddle together like animals and freeze to death? It wouldn't work..."

"This isn't the answer! Killing yourself won't accomplish anything!"

Vicki tugged back even harder, causing the shard to scrape her skin, but not draw blood. "Get out of here... or stay, I don't really care." she pressed the shard to her wrist, but Timmy yanked her hand away.

"I'm not about to let you hurt yourself." Timmy spoke defiantly.

"This isn't your choice! It's mine and I have to make it myself! You don't get to take that away... You don't- Ah..." she gasped as Timmy's grip on her wrist tightened. "That hurts..."

"I know it does..." Timmy tightened his grip further and Vicki dropped the mirror shard on the floor. "But I have to. I won't let you do this. I can't."

Blood trickled down her hand and wrist, then onto his from where the shard had dug in from Vicki holding it so tightly. "Why do you care so much?" Vicki looked down sadly and her hair fell down to cover her eyes. "Why can't you just leave me alone and let me-" her head shot up as she yelled and she glared at him. "It's my life, if I want to end it, then that's my right!"

Timmy shook his head and released her wrist, then walked over to the now open medicine cabinet and pulled out some bandages and gauze.

"Sit down." Timmy gestured to the toilet behind her and she begrudgingly complied. "Let me bandage you up." Timmy dabbed a cotton ball with alcohol on it on her cuts, causing her to hiss in pain.

"Guess I should've done it quicker..."

Timmy looked up at her and sighed, then began wrapping her hand up. "I figured something was wrong, but I thought you were okay. Stupid me for thinking that, you just lost your parents and almost lost your sister. I'm sorry." Timmy finished with some medical tape. "Well, I'm no doctor, but I'd say I did alright."

Vicki didn't answer and merely looked at her bandaged hand. _"Why is he apologizing? I'm the one who..."_

"The Hell's wrong with you?"

"A whole lot..." she looked at him almost... guiltily?

"Understatement. Want me to call the hospital?"

"No. They'll pull me outta here in a heartbeat if you do. I'm fine."

"You're most certainly not! People who are 'fine' don't try to cut their own wrists!"

"Yell it louder! I don't think they heard you in Tibecuador!"

"...I'm sorry-"

"And stop apologizing! I told you before, I don't need your pity!"

"...Are you sure you don't want me to call the hospital? Maybe you can talk to someone, or-"

"I'm sure."

"Fine..." Timmy cleaned up the various mirror shards and threw them in the trash, then grabbed the bag itself and made for the door.

"That's it?" she looked at him bitterly.

"What else is there?" Timmy looked at her again. "I'm coming back after I throw this away, need to keep an eye on you now."

"Why do you say that? I don't need a babysitter!" the dangerous edge she so often favored was back in her voice.

The irony of her statement was not lost on Timmy. "That's where you're wrong. After what you just pulled, I'm not letting you out of my sight for more than a minute. And just so you know, this is non-negotiable; you don't get to make someone care about you and then just try and... check out from life. I don't care if you think it's not right that I'm taking control of your life in some way. If I have to keep an eye on you while you sleep, you can bet your ass that I will!"

"Since when do _you_ have the right to yell at _me_? Try and tell _me_ what to do?!"

Timmy glared at her angrily. "Since you tried to throw you life away! There's no reason to ever throw a life away, not ever! And I care about you and Tootie too much to let you do it!" Timmy left the bathroom and headed downstairs, then returned after a few seconds to kneel in front of Vicki and take her bandaged hand in his. "Better come up with a good lie to explain why the mirror broke and why your hand is so cut up... Then again, it's my parents, so you likely won't need to come up with too much of a convincing lie after all..."

"So... you think... you know me? You think that you've got me all figured out?"

"Why? Are you actually going to tell me? Or are you just going to shut me out like you always do?"

"Why are you doing this? Being so mean to me?"

"Because I told you to come to me if anything was bothering you! I told you... and instead you... you hurt yourself, tried to kill- I told you I care about you. What does killing yourself accomplish?! You may be going through Hell with your parents being gone, but you still have Tootie! Did you even think about how this would make her feel?! Or do you just not care? What about me? Don't my feelings matter?!" the outpouring of emotions had caused Timmy to begin crying. "Why? Why won't you trust me?"

"I-"

"Does it not matter to you? My feelings? Tootie's? Everything?"

"It's not fair... what right do you have to take that choice from me? Everything's just falling apart-" Vicki choked back a sob as she began crying as well. "My parents, foster care, Tootie... Do I deserve this?! Have I really been so awful that everything I know has to be taken away?"

"Of course not. No one deserves what you're going through... But you can't just keep it all bottled up. I know you don't want to come to me and seem weak, but no one is going to judge you for that. The only one who would know about it is me... And I wouldn't do that to you. Not in a million years..."

Vicki looked down at her hand in Timmy's. "I screwed up. I shouldn't have done it... I should've- I should've let you... I'm sorry... Please... don't hate me." Vicki looked up from her hand and into Timmy's blue and bloodshot eyes.

Timmy wanted to stand up and leave her in the bathroom, rather than put himself through the torture of getting close and being rejected and pushed away again. He wanted to... but... He knew better than to walk away from her, no sense fighting against what his brain and heart were screaming at him to do. And again, he couldn't be cruel and leave her when she needed someone, anyone... maybe even him? He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her, like he was afraid she'd just disappear if he didn't.

Vicki expected him to leave, so when he instead hugged her and held her close, she could do nothing but sit there in shock.

Timmy mentally scoffed at himself. He was only fourteen, but he knew what this feeling was. The reason he couldn't tear his mind away from her, or leave her, or stop worrying about her... He loved her, it was the only thing that made sense, even as it didn't make any sense at all. "I don't hate you." He felt Vicki's arms loop around him and she shook slightly with sobs.

They stayed like that for some time, her sitting on the toilet and him kneeling on the floor while hugging her. The shower continued spewing water for no one in particular. "Should probably shut that off..." Timmy released her and turned off the shower, then offered his hand to her so he could help her up, which she took.

"Thanks."

"Are you okay?"

"Like I said, I don't know if I ever will be..." she wiped her eyes with a towel.

Timmy gave her an unsure and worried look.

"What I tried to do... It was stupid. _I'm _stupid. I won't try it again, I promise."

"...Alright... promise me this, if you're feeling down- well miserable again, you'll come to me?"

"...I promise."

"Thank you. This doesn't change what I said you know... I get that you don't want me to be watching you like a hawk, but I want to be sure." Timmy grabbed her hand again and held it in his.

"Fine. I guess I owe you that much..."

"It's not that I don't trust you, it's just-"

"I get it." Vicki sniffled.

"Thank you... for understanding... and for not doing it."

"You stopped me; were it not for you, I would've."

Thoughts of Timmy getting to Vicki too late and finding her wrists sliced open flashed through his mind. "Please, don't ever say that."

"Sorry... I was just trying to say that- I guess you saved me."

"Don't mention it... I mean really don't. Let's put this behind us and keep it there... Um... there's something I wanted to ask you."

"Go ahead... unless it's something perverted. Then the answer's no." she smirked at him, but it was still a sad smirk.

"It's not." Timmy deadpanned at her. "I-"

"Vicki? The social worker should be here in a few minutes!"

"Okay, I'll be right down! Rain check?"

"Sure. But... you should probably wash that blood off you arm." Timmy pointed at the dried lines lines of blood on her arm.

"Right." she took the towel she used to wipe her eyes and ran it under some water in the sink, then wiped away the blood. "Do... you want to come down? For the meeting I mean."

"If you want me to."

"I'd like it if you did."

"Okay then."

Vicki tried to walk away, but was stopped by Timmy as he held her hand once again. "What?" it was a genuinely questioning 'what', rather than a snappy or mean spirited one.

"No matter what they decide down there, everything's going to be okay..."

"I doubt that..."

"...Do you trust me?"

"That question carries a lot of weight for someone like me, Twerp."

"I realize that, which is why I asked. Do you?"

"Well... Tootie does, and you bandaged me up, didn't call the hospital, and you've looked out for me... I can't really say I trust you fully, but I'll give you a chance."

"I guess that's the best I'm gonna get right now. Just trust me, everything will be okay."

Vicki looked at Timmy skeptically; he clearly had some sort of plan in mind, but it seemed he wasn't about to share it with her. She shrugged and led the way as Timmy followed her down to the kitchen.

As she and Timmy sat down at the table, there was a knock at the front door.

"Oh! That must be the social worker!" Timmy's mother rushed to the front door and answered it.

A man of average height and build with a receding hairline and permanently flushed face walked in and introduced himself as 'Mr. McNeil'.

Vicki almost instantly grimaced at the man. He was the type of person that you just hated as soon as you met him... Or maybe it was just Vicki that felt that way.

"Vicki is right in here." Timmy's mother came in, followed by the flushed social worker.

"_He looks like a tomato-head... Oh! What a perfect name!" _Vicky thought to herself.

"Hello Ms. Valentine." Tomato-head stuck his hand out to shake Vicki's. "I'm Mr. McNeil, though my friends call me Pete."

Vicki didn't shake his hand. "Hello Mr. McNeil. My friends call me Vicki."

"Well Vicki, I-"

"Ms. Valentine will do."

Timmy rolled his eyes at Vicki's attitude, unsurprised as he was by it. Despite the fact that she had just met him, this 'McNeil' guy was already on her shit list.

"Alright then..." a vein twitched in Tomato-head's forehead. "Ms. Valentine, let me start by saying I'm very sorry to hear about the loss of your parents. There are many children in the department who have similar stories to yours. Next, I assume you have no close family that can take you in?"

"No, I'm afraid not Tomato- I mean, Mr. McNeil."

"Right then, so it falls to me to find you and your sister... Tootie, was it? A suitable foster home. Unless I can't find one to take both of you, but not to worry, we'll make sure that you both go to suitable homes."

"Mr. McNeil?" Timmy's mother began. "Wouldn't it be best to make sure that Vicki and Tootie stay together? I mean, they really don't have anyone but each other..."

"Not my call Mrs. Turner. If the department doesn't have a home that can take care of both of the kids, then they won't be able to live together, simple as that."

"Isn't that kind of a cruel way to look at things?"

"My job isn't to care, my job is to get kids into foster homes."

Timmy felt just a hint of anger flash through his mind. Was this really how these social workers acted? How could they be this bad? "Excuse me, but-"

"And who are you?"

"Timmy Turner. I'm a friend of Tootie and Vicki's. Shouldn't your top priority be to make sure that Vicki and Tootie stay together?"

"I really don't need a teenager telling me how to do my job. Vicki and Tootie will go to whatever homes are available, there's little else that I need to concern myself with."

"Wow. I guess the rumors about the department are true, you guys _are_ abunch of dicks."

"Mrs. Turner, as charming as your son is, may I ask why he is here? This meeting doesn't concern him."

"Well, I-"

"Timmy's here because I asked him to be present for the meeting, end of story." Vicky spoke up.

"Fine, but we really should get down to business. There are a number of foster homes available, but I haven't gotten the chance to check in on them, nor do I know if both you and your sister will be able to move there together."

"So you want me to pick one at random and hope for the best?" Vicki asked in disbelief.

"Don't be silly! I'm going to pick, you're at the mercy of Lady Luck."

"What?!"

"Now, I-"

"Mom?" Timmy interrupted Tomato-head.

"What is it Sweetie?"

"Can we put this meeting on hold for a minute? I need to talk to you about something."

"Oh, um... Sure. Is that alright, Mr. McNeil?"

"Er... I suppose so, but hurry back! I have more families and friends to tear apart!"

Timmy and his mother left the kitchen and sat down on the couch in the living room. "Is something the matter Timmy?"

"Yeah, I'd say so. You aren't really going to let this guy split up Tootie and Vicki, are you?"

"Timmy... it really isn't my call... Where else could the two of them stay, here?"

Timmy looked at his mother seriously; that was exactly what he had been planning to ask his mother. "Well... yes, actually."

"Here?! But... where would they even sleep? The basement isn't suitable for either of them..."

"What about the big room next to mine? The one we use for storage and have never mentioned before now?"

"I... I suppose that could work... But Vicki and Tootie would have to be okay with it... And your Father and I would have to sign into the department as foster parents..."

"Please Mom, I don't want them to get split up... I want Vicki and Tootie to be okay..."

"Is there something else you aren't telling me?" his mother looked at him slyly. "You like Tootie, don't you?"

"You're close..."

"Well... I suppose whichever one of them you like isn't really my business. What are you going to do about Vicki?"

"I'll... let her keep using my bed. At least until you and dad get everything worked out here... So... does that mean...?"

"I'd love it if Vicki wanted to stay here, but that's up to her."

"We might as well go ask her then, huh?"

"You're right." Timmy and his mother got off the couch and returned to the kitchen. "Mr. McNeil? I was wondering if- that is, if Vicki is okay with the idea... Might she and Tootie be able to stay here?"

"I- Hm... if you and your husband sign in with the department... I suppose you two could be their foster parents..."

Vicki looked on in shock at the conversation playing out. Is this what Timmy had talked to his mother about in the living room? She looked at Timmy as he stood next to his mother. He noticed and winked at her. So _this _was what he wanted to ask her...

"Vicki? Is that what you want? To live here with your sister and... these people?"

Vicki could do nothing but nod dumbly in the affirmative.

"Then it's settled! My husband and I will be down first thing in the morning to fill out the necessary paperwork."

"Very well Mrs. Turner. Just ask for me and we can take care of it."

"Great! Let me walk you out!" Timmy's mother followed Tomato-head out of the kitchen, leaving Timmy and Vicki alone.

"So..." Timmy began while blushing and scratching the back of his head. "I guess we're stuck with each other..."

Vicki nodded once again.

"Uh... you can keep using my bed until my parents work out the upstairs storage room... Are you- are you really okay with all this? I know I just kinda jumped it on you, but... that guy started talking about you and Tootie being separated and I guess... I just figured it was now or never... Vicki?"

Vicki snapped out of the trance she seemed to be in and looked at Timmy. "I- You want us to live here? You want..._me_ to live here?"

"I do. Tootie's my best friend and you... I already told you that I care about you... so yes, I want you to stay here and live with us... as a family. Do... you want to live here? I was going to ask you in the bathroom, but that social worker-"

"Tomato-head."

"Right... Tomato-head... anyway, he showed up."

"I um... this- this is more than I could've asked for!" a happy smile grew across Vicki's face, it was as though the last few days' events had never happened. "I don't- what _can_ I even say?"

"There's always thank you."

"Thank you, but..."

"Hey, don't worry about it. I'm happy as long as you and Tootie get to stay in my life. I'm gonna go start clearing out the storage room. Will you be alright down here?"

"Um... yeah. I have to ask your mom some things anyway."

"Okay, I-" Timmy stopped and looked at Vicki carefully.

"What?" she looked at herself, then her eyes passed over her bandaged hand. "Oh... look, I said I wasn't going to try that again. I trusted you, now you trust me, okay?"

Timmy hesitated for several seconds, then left the kitchen and went upstairs.

"When will he learn? I don't need-" Vicki sighed. "I guess I can't blame him for worrying about me..." Vicki went into the living room to find Mrs. Turner sitting on the couch.

"Hi Vicki! Timmy said he's going to go clear out that storage room for you, would you like to watch TV with me? I just found the new episode of Crash Nebula! He's such a hunksicle!"

"Yeah... sure." Vicki sat down on the couch. "Did... my parents leave me and Tootie anything? I know that most people write out a will, but my parents never got around to doing it... at least, I don't think they did..."

"No, it seems they didn't. Everything they owned now goes to you and Tootie... Well, once you're both old enough to claim it. For now, it's my and my husband's job to hold it for you two."

"Oh... okay. Thank you."

"It's no problem. Once you're old enough to get a job, you'll be able to be Tootie's legal guardian and move back into your parents' house, if you want."

"I can't keep... babysitting Timmy?"

"I... hm... I hadn't thought of that... he would technically be your foster brother now, but... if you still want the job, it's yours."

"Sure. I don't mind keeping an eye on him and my sister. I'm pretty used to it by now."

"Great! I just have to tell you though..."

"Yes?"

"Now that you and Timmy are living under the same roof, I- just make sure to keep the affection to a minimum around the social workers when they visit. I've heard they don't usually allow kids of the opposite sex to live under one roof."

"Huh? Timmy and I? We're not-" Vicki thought about what Mrs. Turner just said. _"Did he tell her we're... together?"_ "Ugh... would you excuse me Mrs. Turner? I have to go clear something up."

"Of course Vicki! We'll talk later!" Timmy's mother waved bye to Vicki as she ascended the stairs and made her way toward the room next to Timmy's.

Vicki threw the door open and narrowed her eyes at Timmy. "You wanna tell me something?"

Timmy turned around from the box he was packing things into and looked at Vicki confusedly. "Um... it's dusty in here?"

"No not that. Did you tell your mom that we're... together?"

"No... she assumes we are. I told you that."

"Did you tell her we aren't?"

"Yes, several times, in fact." Timmy returned to packing things into the box.

"So why does she think you and I are a couple?"

"Beats me. She's... delusional or something? But..."

"I told you, I need to think about it. Rushing into a relationship is the last thing I want to do right now..."

"...How's your hand?"

"Fine. You did a good job bandaging it, thanks."

"Does it hurt?"

"Stop changing the subject! Did you tell your mom that we are together?"

"Are we?" Timmy looked at her hopefully, but it was meant to be a joke.

"W-why are you-?! Ooh... I get it, you're trying to mess with me. I'm not falling for it."

"Okay... not really that much of an answer... I should get back to it." Timmy returned his attention to the now full box of assorted junk, then walked toward the closet of the storage room. He opened the door and set down the box, then pulled at a string that hung from the ceiling, revealing a ladder up to the attic.

"I'm... tired, is it alright if I take a nap?"

"You're asking me permission to nap?"

"Since I was hoping to use _your_ bed, yes."

"I already told you-" Timmy climbed up the ladder with the box. "Feel free to use my bed whenever you want. Though I expect to get it back when you and Tootie get beds of your own."

"Maybe I won't give it back; I could just keep it for myself..."

"You say something? Can't hear you too well up here."

"Nevermind!" Vicki yelled up to him, then left the room and went into Timmy's. She felt exhausted, yet also felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. No longer did she have to worry about going to a weird foster home or having to run away with Tootie and the Twerp. Everything was fine... for the moment anyway.

Vicki collapsed onto the bed and crawled under the covers. The bed still smelled a little like Timmy, despite her sleeping in the room and occasionally spraying some perfume... Vicki inhaled the smell through her nose and it somehow brought her a small bit of comfort. _"Jeez... listen to me go on like some lovestruck schoolgirl..." _she yawned and felt herself drift off to sleep.

_In the storage room, some time later..._

"There!" Timmy looked at the room proudly, despite it still being very dusty and only half-emptied of storage bins. "...Good enough for one day." Timmy wiped his brow of the sweat that wasn't even there and left the room, shutting the door behind him, then going into his own room and collapsing onto his bed. Evidently he didn't remember that Vicki was currently occupying it. He was likely too tired to remember. "Oh bed, how I've missed you so..." Timmy crawled under the covers and gripped what he thought was a pillow, pulling it closer and relaxing into it. "Goodnight... whatever today is..."

Timmy awoke several hours later and opened his eyes to find Vicki's face inches from his. "Weird... weird dream..." he smiled to himself and closed his eyes, only for them to shoot back open in fear almost immediately. _"Oh crap... No need to panic, just need to carefully get out of bed and-"_

Vicki shifted slightly and made an odd, half whine, half moan noise as she moved a bit closer to Timmy. Her nose brushed against his; it felt just slightly cold.

After what felt like an eternity, Timmy tried moving away again, only to be met with some resistance against his back. It appeared that Vicki, while she was sleeping, had wrapped her arms around Timmy. Not surprising, considering what she was going through; even while asleep, she still sought comfort from somewhere... Timmy just didn't expect it to be him again.

Though he was currently sleeping in _her_ bed...

Timmy tried to wriggle out of her grasp, but all he succeeded in doing was causing a semi-angry look to come over her face as she tightened her grip on her new teddy bear. _"There is no way for this situation to end well..."_ Timmy turned his head slightly to see his alarm clock, it read ten PM. He currently had no notions for going to sleep, in fact, he was now wide awake. "Um... Vicki?" he whispered.

Vicki dug her nails into his back and made a noise similar to the one before.

It didn't hurt much, but he decided that asking her to let go was out of the question. He might as well be sleeping a few inches from a bear, knowing Vicki's self-defense classes and strength. But staying in his current position until morning was definitely not an option; she'd kill him as soon as she woke.

Another idea rose to the surface in Timmy's mind and he contemplated it. _"Couldn't hurt... actually, it very well could if I'm not careful..."_ Timmy pulled his right arm free and very, _very_ lightly began scratching at Vicki's nose. After a few seconds, Vicki released a very cute, very girly sounding sneeze, then rubbed at her nose with her left hand. _"Great! Now I just need to-"_ Before Timmy could move more than an inch away, Vicki's arm was wrapped around him again. _"...Fuck..."_

Timmy laid there for the next fifteen minutes, the only sounds being Vicki's breathing and Timmy's very erratic heartbeat. While the more sane part of his brain thought of a way to get his body out of his current situation, the less sane(and arguably more perverted) part didn't want him to move anywhere. It was true that Timmy wanted to be this close to someone... anyone... alright, just Vicki, but now that he was... he couldn't help but think that it was wrong to just go with it. _"She's just lost her parents and all you ca__n__ think about is-"_ Timmy shook his head back and forth to clear his mind, causing Vicki to release another sleepy-sounding whine and drape her left leg over both of his. _"Great. This night just keeps getting better..."_

Another forty-five minutes passed and Timmy was beginning to feel sleepy again. He yawned and covered his mouth as he did; knowing Vicki, an act as simple as breathing wrong could wake her up and cause her to rip his face off. His lack of a full night's sleep began to affect his thoughts... _"Maybe I could just lay here and sleep... Tell her in the morning that I was really tired and just wandered in here... I convinced mom and dad to let her live here, gave her my bed, and cleared out the storage room for her and Tootie... That has to mean something... right?" _He could sense his thoughts becoming muddled and hazy.

His eyes shot back open again as the more logical side of his brain made him realize his current location again. He looked at Vicki. She seemed so peaceful right now, compared to normal caustic look she gave to nearly everyone else. _"She's beautiful..." _He could agree with that thought. _"Her lips look so soft..."_ That thought, however... _"No... no ...No. Bad brain, bad thoughts!"_

Vicki released a content-sounding sigh, leaving her lips just slightly parted.

"_C'mon Turner. Just get out of bed and go to sleep downstairs... Just-" _Timmy's actions overrode his thoughts as he began leaning closer to Vicki's face. _"What am I doing?!" _He was close enough now to feel her breath on his lips. This was definitely, most assuredly, one-hundred and ten percent, a bad idea.

And for some odd reason, he didn't care.

He pressed on and closed the distance as quickly and carefully as he could. As expected, Vicki's lips felt soft, even softer than they looked. Being that it was his first kiss, he did little but press his lips against hers, and being that Vicki was still asleep, Vicki didn't actually return the kiss, but he definitely felt a small spark.

Also guilt at having stolen Vicki's first kiss... but he'd get over that, for now, he-

_KNOCK KNOCK_

"Vicki? Is Timmy in there with you?"

Vicki's eyes fluttered open and she lazily glanced around the room before her eyes fell on Timmy.

He stared back at her with wide eyes that betrayed more than a hint of fear.

"Mmph... Hm?" Vicki attempted to answer, but her lips seemed to be occupied with... something else. She glanced down for a few seconds before her brain registered what exactly was going on. Vicki slowly glanced back up at Timmy and then glared at him.

Timmy could feel a cold sweat break out over his body as Vicki pulled away from Timmy, separating their lips with a very low smacking sound.

"Yeah, he must've fallen asleep on the floor after he cleared out the storage room, I'll throw a blanket over him."

"Thank you, Vicki. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Mrs. Turner."

Both teens heard the sound of Timmy's mother's footsteps walk down the hall and enter her bedroom, then shut the door.

Once all was quiet, Vicki returned to glaring at Timmy, who was still laying right next to her. "What. The. Fuck?!" Vicki whispered, but it still felt like she was screaming it into his ears. "What the Hell are you doing?! Was I not clear when I said I needed time? I don't even... and you kissed me! Why- How long were you even here?!"

"I-I wandered in here after I cleared out the storage room... I guess I was so tired that I forgot you were sleeping in here..."

Vicki looked him over and realized that her arms were still wrapped around him, her leg also remained draped over his. She slowly untangled herself from him and returned her limbs to more neutral positions. "So at what point did kissing me come into the equation?!"

"I'm- I'm sorry..."

"You bet your ass you are! You haven't even _begun_ to be sorry! You think you can just kiss me while I'm sleeping?!"

"No, I- I shouldn't have... I told you I'm sorry. I- there's nothing else I can say... Please don't- I-"

Vicki facepalmed and groaned. "Just get out of here..."

"You're not gonna hit me? Yell at me? Kill me?"

"Luckily for you, no. Don't think you're in the clear, I'm just giving you a break that you really don't deserve since you offered to let me and Tootie live here."

Timmy was too shocked by Vicki's mercy to even move at first.

"You're still here." Vicki peeked one eye out from between her fingers.

Timmy scrambled out of the bed and out the door, then down into the living room and laid down on the couch. After several seconds, Timmy released a breath that he was unaware he had been holding and tried to get some sleep.

* * *

><p>AN: Well, here's chapter three. Still working on the others in the Winter Break series, but I finished this one, so I figured I'd put it up. The last few scenes seem a tad familiar to you? If you watched Evangelion, they should. Though I took it a step further. Has Timmy ruined things with Vicki by being too bold? ...Probably not, but who knows? You'll all have to wait for chapter four to find out!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I actually wrote this while listening to 'Times Like These' by Malukah, originally by the Foo Fighters. I like her version way better. So now you all know that I'm a romantic sap that listens to music while he writes.

* * *

><p>"Hey." Vicki poked at the forehead of the person who would soon be known as her foster brother. "Twerp. Get up."<p>

Timmy stretched and looked at the girl standing before him. "What's up?"

"Clearly not you. It's time for school, Genius."

"It is?! What time is-" Timmy sat straight up on the couch.

"Six in the morning."

"Wha? School's not for another two hours. Why'd you wake me up so early?"

"It was the best thing I could think of to torture you without inflicting bodily harm. Maybe you forgot what happened last night, but I didn't, and you're gonna pay for it today." Vicki scowled at him. "Now get up and cook me some breakfast."

"_Right..."_ Timmy remembered as he made one of the most rash and stupid decisions of his life and kissed Vicki while she slept. There was one plus to kissing her that was now making itself known. Vicki was back to her old caustic self; no more sad look, no more moping around, no more crying. Strong, confident Vicki was back in full force.

"Come on!" Vicki yanked him off the couch and to his feet.

"I'm going..." Timmy went into the kitchen and immediately began preparing a large breakfast for himself and Vicki, consisting of eggs, bacon, toast, and orange juice.

Vicki sat down at the kitchen table and watched him cook. It was a skill she would have to learn sooner rather than later now that she was going to be Tootie's guardian in a few years. "Oh! I just remembered! Your Mom said that I can keep babysitting you as my job, isn't that great?"

Timmy shrugged. "Hey, as long as you and Tootie stay in my life, I'm happy for you." he flipped an egg onto a plate along with some toast. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I'm really, really, _really_, sorry. What I did was a mistake and I shouldn't have done it. Can you please forgive me?"

Vicki chewed on a piece of toast and seemed to mull his request over. "I'll think about it, depending on how the day goes, but for now... you're on thin ice, got it?"

"Fair enough. Can I get you anything else?" Timmy asked kindly.

"Hm..." Vicki sipped from her glass of juice. "You got the homework from Friday?"

Timmy left the kitchen and went up to his room, then returned a few minutes later. "Here. This is all the homework and classwork you blackmailed Crocker into letting you do at home." he placed a small stack of papers in front of her.

Vicki picked up the papers and flipped through them. "These- these are already done?" Vicki gave him a bewildered look.

"Just need you to put your name on them." Timmy sat down and began eating his own breakfast.

"Y-you did my homework for me?"

"Don't I always?" Timmy asked with a shrug as he ate his toast.

"Well, yeah... but I didn't expect... I didn't think you'd keep doing it for me after I was so horrible to you... and you convinced your Mom to let me stay here..."

Timmy frowned as Vicki's attitude began to change back to unsure. He was afraid that she'd lapse back into depression again. "If you don't want me to..."

"Hah! You kidding? What else are you good for besides doing my homework and cooking for me?" she shot back with a grin.

"_Phew... old Vicki's still here..."_ "So... you still want me to do it for you?"

"Want you to? I expect you to!" Vicki stood up from the table and her now cleared plate. "Thanks for breakfast. I'm gonna go take a shower; you can clean up down here, right?"

"Sure; mind saving me some hot water?"

"If you're lucky." she left him behind in the kitchen as she went into the living room and headed upstairs.

Timmy smiled to himself as he grabbed Vicki's plate and his own and put them in the dishwasher. Despite how hard things had become over the past few days, it seemed things were finally being allowed to go back to normal. Vicki was mostly back to her old self, Tootie would soon be out of the hospital and living with them, his mother was being oddly... motherly towards him... Yep, things were definitely getting back to the way they once were; better even. "Do I have to start calling Vicki and Tootie my sisters now?"

_Upstairs..._

Vicki turned on the shower and took off her green t-shirt and black jeans, the clothes she had fallen asleep in, followed by her underwear and stepped into the near searing water of the shower. "Hah..." Vicki sighed contentedly. "I guess this is life now, living here with Tootie and the Twerp..." Vicki thought back to her life before all this, back to when her parents were still alive. Things wouldn't ever be exactly the same, not with her parents gone... but they were definitely better than they had been. She looked at her bandaged hand, which stung slightly as the hot water fell over where the cuts were. She unwrapped her hand and looked at the small cuts; they were already beginning to heal and weren't anywhere near as deep as she thought they had been. She shook her hand slightly to try and dull the pain and began washing herself off, which only caused more stinging from the cuts when she got soap in them. Ditto for when she washed her hair. "Better have the Twerp re-bandage them..." _"Wait... why? I can bandage them myself..."_

Shaking her head to clear it of the odd thoughts, she shut off the hot water and got out, then dried herself off and got dressed in fresh clothes. She opened the door to the bathroom to find Timmy with his hand in the air, evidently about to knock on the door. "Oh. Hey... I was gonna ask if you were okay in there."

"Do I look okay?"

"_You look great..."_ "Yes."

"Good, I was looking for great, but I'll take okay." she moved to walk past him, but stopped when he began to speak.

"Your hand okay?"

"It's healing up pretty well. Just took the bandages off to see." she held her hand up and looked at it.

Timmy grabbed her hand without thinking and took a closer look at it. "Hm... looks like they weren't as deep as I thought..." he looked back at Vicki and realized how close they were and their somewhat intimate position. "Er..." Timmy released her hand and returned his own to his sides. "Sorry..."

"Would you... mind bandaging it back up?" her cheeks pinkened as she said this.

"Um... no, not at all." Timmy led her back into the bathroom and took more gauze and medical tape out of the cabinet. "You shouldn't need more alcohol on the cuts now..." he began re-bandaging her hand. "Just, y'know, keep it dry and don't get any dirt in it..."

"Thanks 'Doc'." she rolled her eyes at him as he told her obvious facts about wounds.

Timmy stopped to judge his work, then became lost in his thoughts and just stood there holding Vicki's hand.

"...Can I have my hand back now?"

"Oh!" Timmy let go of her hand and rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Yeah, sorry... I'm- I'm gonna take a shower." Timmy walked past her to grab some clothes from his room.

Vicki watched him leave and let out a long sigh through her nose. He was making it very difficult to stay mad at him. She had figured she'd give him the silent treatment for a few days to let him think about what he did, yet here she was asking for his help and blushing around him like a girl with a crush... "I'm such an idiot."

"What now?" Timmy had reappeared from his room and now stood in the doorway of the bathroom.

"Nothing. I saved you some hot water; you owe me." Vicki walked past him and into his room.

Timmy turned on the shower and stuck his hand under the water. A slightly shocked expression came over his face; she _had_ saved him some hot water. "Wonder what she's gonna want in return for this..."

Vicki currently laid on Timmy's bed, she was still pretty tired after the events of the night before and would've preferred to stay in bed longer, rather than get up early, but she wanted Timmy to realize his mistake. She hadn't planned on him taking it in stride though.

She wondered how things would be at school. Would all her classmates feel like they had to walk on eggshells around her? Trixie and Veronica would likely act different. They saw her as something between a leader and a big sister, despite the fact that Vicki wasn't particularly rich or popular. They had tried calling her after they heard about her parents, but she didn't answer the phone. She hadn't felt like talking to anyone at the time. In fact, she still didn't; she really hoped that nobody would bring up her parents at school. If she needed someone to talk to, she had Timmy, he understood(to some extent) what she was going through. "Much as I don't want to admit it..."

The door opened and Timmy walked in, wearing just his blue jeans.

"I don't remember ordering a free show." Vicki looked at him with a bored expression.

"Grabbed one of my older shirts. Thing's full of holes."

Vicki found her eyes drawn to his chest, not to say that Timmy was particularly well built, but he had some muscle. Keyword being 'some'. "I know this is your room, but can't you knock? What if I was changing in here?"

"You already got changed in the bathroom, otherwise I would've knocked." Timmy shrugged as he went over to his dresser and pulled out one of his less destroyed shirts. "I was thinking that... we could maybe go see Tootie today? Let her know the good news?"

"Right after school?"

"Yeah, the less she worries, the better, right?"

"Hope she's doing okay..."

"She's fine. You know how I know?" Timmy turned to face Vicki after he put his shirt on.

"How?"

"'Cause she's _your_ sister. Both of you are a Hell of a lot stronger than me, I'm not afraid to admit that."

There was silence between the two teens for several seconds before Vicki decided to break it. "We- we should probably get going."

"Ladies first." Timmy grabbed both of their backpacks and handed Vicki hers.

She took it and led the way out of the house and to the bus stop. "Guess your parents are gonna be my foster parents by the end of the day today..." Vicki made the statement as she and Timmy walked to the bus stop and it caught him off guard.

"Yeah, something wrong with that?"

"I hope your mom doesn't want me to call her 'mom'..."

"Well, I don't expect you to start calling me 'bro'. That might be awkward if we- um..."

Vicki was walking ahead of Timmy, so she couldn't see his face, but it seemed likely that he was blushing since he had cut himself off. It was pretty obvious as to what he was referring to, their close proximity to each other seemed to have only made his feelings toward her grow. But she still hadn't figured out her own feelings; she knew she didn't hate him and she knew that some part of her liked him... And she was already well on her way to forgiving him for kissing her while she slept...

"Vicki?"

"Hm? What? You say something?"

"I asked you if you were sure you were ready to come back to school? I know you're strong, but... you know how the kids at school can be..."

Vicki stopped as they arrived at their bus stop just in time for the bus to come into view. "I already told you, I'm fine. My parents are gone, that's that. There's nothing I can do about it and there's certainly no sense in dwelling on it and moping about for a week or more."

The bus stopped in front of their stop and they got on, Vicki sat down near the back of the bus and Timmy moved to walk by her seat before she yanked him down next to her. "But thanks for asking." she said with a small smile. "Don't think that you're in the clear, 'cause you're not! ...But... thanks for being there for me the past couple days. I know I don't show it, and you shouldn't expect me to, but I appreciate it."

"A-anytime Vicki." Timmy watched her as she turned her attention away from him and instead focused on the Dimmsdale suburbs as the bus passed them by. She wasn't wearing anything particularly revealing today, just her green t-shirt and black jeans combo. Whether that meant that she was still hurting or not, Timmy couldn't be sure. _"__Maybe- maybe I should step back for now..."_ Kissing her was beginning to weigh heavily on his mind, as he knew it would. Kissing Vicki in itself was not a mistake, but stealing a kiss from her while she was asleep definitely was. Even if Vicki was willing to forgive him, he wasn't sure he'd be able to forgive himself anytime soon; back when he was in that position, he didn't particularly care about the consequences. Vicki's lips were mere centimeters from his and he suddenly found himself acting on instinct.

Vicki yawned and stretched next to him. She obviously wasn't letting the kiss bother her right now, otherwise she'd be giving him an earful... that, or she wouldn't have pulled him down to sit next to her. Still, he couldn't help but feel like he was currently experiencing the calm before the storm...

Once they arrived at school, Timmy insisted on staying close to Vicki, much to her chagrin. She still didn't like him being _her _babysitter while she was getting paid to be _his_. She sat down in her seat in homeroom and he sat down in the chair behind hers. "You plan on following me around like a lost puppy all day?"

"No. We don't have all the same classes today; I can't follow you everywhere." Timmy put his feet up on his desk and folded his arms across his chest, earning him a dirty look from Crocker. "I'm just looking out for you, like I said I would." Timmy leaned back a little too far and his chair tipped backward, causing him to fall onto the floor.

Vicki turned away to keep from bursting out laughing and covered her face with her hands.

She heard Timmy straighten out his chair and sit back down. "Er-hem, meant to do that."

"Turner! 'F'! For being bad at sitting at your desk!" Crocker had been waiting to give him an 'F' for _something_.

"It's gonna be a long day..." Vicki put her head down on her desk.

Timmy and Vicki separated at the end of homeroom; Vicki going to chemistry and Timmy going to photography.

"So, did you hear about Vicki, man?" Chester asked as Timmy looked at the new cameras the class would be using.

"What part?" Timmy asked with a hint of dread in his voice.

"About her parents? And Tootie?"

"Chester. You were at the funeral." Timmy continued looking at the digital camera.

"I was?" Chester held his chin in thought for several seconds.

"Yeah. What were you? High again?" AJ responded.

"I... Oh yeah! I'm not great with emotional stuff like that, needed something to take the edge off."

"You're hopeless. Blinding yourself to life and death can't be good for you." Timmy said off-handedly as he adjusted the settings on the camera.

"Hey! We all have different ways of dealing with shit, weed happens to be mine!"

_CLICK_

The camera flashed in Chester's face as Timmy took his picture without looking. "Project's done. Capture a picture of someone experiencing real emotion without it being staged." The little camera screen showed a picture of Chester yelling angrily at it.

"Nicely done." AJ responded, clearly impressed by how quickly Timmy completed their project.

"Thank you." Timmy placed the camera down. "So, any other questions?"

"How's Tootie holding up?"

"She's good. Got pretty banged up in the crash, but she doesn't seem to have any lasting injuries. She definitely got off lucky."

"Luckier than her parents." AJ muttered, causing his group and the two adjacent groups to fall silent and look at him. "What?"

"Dude, you may be a robot, but seriously not cool. Hey! Our Tin Man needs a heart over here!"

Their photography teacher, Ms. Mason, a young blonde woman who was eternally bored with her task of being a photography teacher, looked over at Chester upon hearing his remark. "I'll get right on that, as soon as I figure out where to get a brain for you, Scarecrow." Ms. Mason returned to reading her book amid the class erupting into 'Oohs' and 'Aahs'.

Timmy laughed along with the rest of the class, causing Ms. Mason to direct her playful joking at him. "Careful there Lion, wouldn't want to use up all that new found courage, would ya?"

"What now?" Timmy asked with genuine confusion.

"I heard about you opening your house to Dorothy. Very big of you." with that, she returned to her book.

"What was that about? Dorothy? Staying at your house?" AJ asked Timmy.

"No idea... Unless... Hey! How do you know about that?"

Ms. Mason looked down from her book with her characteristic half-lidded eye expression. "I have my ways. Girl like me needs to stay in the know, y'know?" she winked at Timmy, eliciting a barely noticeable blush. "Your group's project done?"

"Yeah, here ya go." Timmy tossed the(likely very expensive) camera at Ms. Mason, who caught it without getting out of her chair or looking away from her book.

"Hm..." she checked the picture. "Very nice! You three are free to do what you want." she placed the camera back down and returned to her book.

"Well... what about the other sister?" AJ asked as he looked around.

"Other sister? You make it sound like uttering Vicki's name-"

The clouds outside the window darkened slightly.

"Will have some sort of effect that might be bad for our health."

"I don't- Whatever man, what's going on with Vicki?"

"She's fine. Well... as fine as someone can be who just lost both her parents and almost lost her sister." Timmy shrugged.

"You almost sound sorry for her..."

"Why wouldn't I? Vicki's human like the rest of us; you make her sound like some unfeeling beast."

"Well..." AJ poked his index fingers together uneasily. "She's not exactly easy to approach... or talk to... or be within the same district as."

"She's hardly as bad as you make her sound." Timmy shrugged and leaned on his elbow.

"Why are you defending her?"

"Seriously dude?" Chester spoke up and looked at AJ with disbelief. "Timmy's been crushing on Red for the past couple years!"

"I have not!" Timmy shot back much too defensively. "And why Red?"

"The hair?" Chester asked like it was clearly obvious.

"Wait. You like Vicki?!"

"How do you not know?" Timmy asked now. "While I insist that I haven't been 'crushing' on her, I do kind of... like her. Maybe."

"Yeah, Timmy's been pining after Red for a while now, I can't believe you didn't notice, Robobrain."

"'Pining' after her? I just kinda like her, that's all."

"But why?!" AJ nearly yelled.

"Duh, because Red's hot."

"Can we please just call Vicki, Vicki?! So I like her, secret's out, drop it."

"So are you two going steady?" Ms. Mason smiled from behind her book.

"Kill me now." Timmy facedesked.

_Meanwhile..._

Vicki walked into her chemistry class and looked around for the only two people that she didn't want to strangle.

"Hey Vicki!" Veronica shouted to her from the other side of the room. Next to her sat Trixie, also known as Timmy's ex-crush, also known as the self-proclaimed princess of the high school, also one of the few people that wasn't terrified of Vicki, along with Veronica.

Vicki smiled and waved to the two girls as she navigated the various lab stations to sit next to them. She had no idea why these two girls gravitated to her, and she at first did her best to scare them off, but they were persistent and Vicki eventually came to accept them, then welcome their companionship. "So, what's been going on?"

"I was gonna ask you! Are you sure you're okay to be here?! How's Tootie doing? Is she okay? Are _you_ okay? What are you gonna do now? Where will you live? Oh! Maybe you can live with me?! I think that-"

Vicki felt her head begin to spin at the torrent of questions that were currently crashing into her.

Trixie rolled her eyes at Veronica's endless questions and slapped her hand over the blonde's mouth. "Veronica? How about we ask them one at a time, hm?"

"Mm-phm mm-hm? Mm... Hmph!" Veronica tried to speak through Trixie's hand to no avail.

"To start-" Vicki began. "Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking. I'm not gonna break down and start crying in the middle of chem, or any other class for that matter. Tootie's doing just fine, she should be getting released from the hospital some time this week once she's healed up a bit more. As for me, once again, I'm fine. It'll take more than losing my parents to break me." Vicki said confidently.

"Wow... you're just... wow..." Veronica nearly swooned at Vicki's confident expression.

Vicki and Trixie had a sneaking suspicion that Veronica had a strange crush on Vicki, but chose to do their best to ignore it, because that's how you solve problems, just ignore them.

"Anyway... as for what I'm gonna do, I have to be in the foster care system until I'm old enough to take care of myself, when I'm eighteen. Once I hit eighteen, I'll be able to act as Tootie's legal guardian and get a place of my own with her."

"Okay...?" Trixie began. "But where are you gonna be staying until then?"

"That's... it's complicated." Vicki said as she scratched her nose nervously.

"How so?"

"Well... you know that kid I babysit a lot? Timmy?"

"Oh yeah!" Veronica exclaimed jubilantly. "I have a few classes with him! He's a sweet guy, never has a problem helping me out in class."

Vicki felt an odd emotion at this, but she couldn't quite place it.

"Timmy... Oh! He's the one who had a crush on me for a while! Took him forever to take the hint that I wasn't interested in him..."

"Why didn't you like him anyway? He's a great catch compared to the rest of his little group." Veronica asked Trixie once she found enough time to stop giving Vicki googly eyes.

"I dunno... he's just... not really my type. Besides, doesn't he have a crush on Vicki's sister?"

"Nah, she had a crush on him, but they decided to just be friends." Vicki interjected. "Good thing too, she was getting just a little obsessed."

"Well anyway, I'd see if he's wanted to go out, but I've heard he's- uh... playing for the other team?" Veronica added quietly.

'What?!" Vicki yelled. "You think Timmy's gay?! Haha!" Vicki broke into a fit of laughter at this and she was joined by Trixie. "Why... Why would you think that?!"

"Well... he gave up on Trixie... and he always hangs out with Chester and AJ... and he's never made any moves towards Tootie... Kinda makes sense that he'd be gay, doesn't it?"

"Well, I can assure you, he isn't." Vicki wiped her eyes.

"Really?!" Veronica put her index finger to her chin in thought. "Well... this _is_ interesting..."

"At any rate, we should get back to my previous point. The reason it's complicated is because... when we found out about my parents and Tootie, I had been babysitting Timmy on Friday. His parents called and told me the news, then took us to the hospital, where I was able to find out that Tootie survived. I needed someplace to stay, and Timmy's parents offered to let me stay there until the social worker came to take me to a foster home... I'm not gonna lie to you two, I was scared of what might happen to me and Tootie. But then... the social worker showed up and was talking about me and Tootie not being able to go to the same foster home and Timmy suddenly- He asked if Tootie and I could live at his house..."

"Wow... he really did that? Any idea why?" Veronica asked.

"I should think it's obvious." Trixie replied. "Timmy must like either Tootie..." Trixie turned to look at Vicki. "Or you."

"_Damn perceptive friends!"_ "Who knows? All I know is that I've got a place to live that pays well and lets me live in much the same way that I'm used to. That's good enough for me."

"Pays well?"

"Timmy's parents are letting me keep babysitting him." Vicki smirked confidently.

"Oh yeah? Not bad! But... who do you think it is that Timmy likes?"

"Huh?" her friends were changing the subject back to the one that Vicki didn't want to discuss.

"C'mon... we've pretty much figured out that Timmy is just friends with Tootie... so that just leaves..."

"Ladies! What are you doing gossip-"

Vicki shot her chemistry teacher a dark look, silencing her and making her turn her attention to the rest of the class.

"Maybe he does, so what?"

"Do you like him?"

"I tolerate him, even that's pushing it." Vicki crossed her arms and looked away.

"So... you mind if I ask him out?"

"Don't the boys usually do that?" Veronica asked the now emboldened Trixie. "And I thought you didn't like him?"

"Well, with you two singing his praises, maybe I'll give him another shot." Trixie shrugged.

Veronica's face fell slightly, while Vicki felt a twinge of what she guessed to be jealousy.

"Do as you like." Vicki finally replied. "I don't have time to concern myself with what a couple of hormonal teenagers do."

_Timmy, Chester, and AJ_

"But how can you like _her_?! She's... she's Icky Vicki! Scourge of children everywhere! What about all the things she does to torture us?!"

"Why are we still on this after an entire period of you asking me about it?! And Ms. Mason too! I can't rationalize why I like her without sounding like I'm crazy-"

"That's for sure!"

"So just drop it!" Timmy followed Chester and AJ out of photography class. "I'll see you in math. Try to control your raging question boner 'til then, okay?"

"Pfft." AJ waved him off and headed toward his class. "And it's algebra!"

"Whatever!" Timmy shouted back as Veronica fell into step next to him and Chester, followed by Vicki. "Hey Red-" _"Goddammit!" _"Vicki!"

Vicki looked at him quizzically for several seconds, then opted to not respond.

"_Crap. Cold shoulder time..."_ "So Veronica, how was chem?"

"Not too bad, not when you're friends with Vicki!" she wrapped her arms around the red-head, eliciting a wide-eyed look from her.

Chester nudged Timmy with his elbow and whispered in his ear. "Dude."

"Shut up!" Timmy whispered back angrily through clenched teeth.

Vicki untangled herself from Veronica. "Luckily for you and Trixie, most of the teachers here know to be afraid of me."

"How was photography class?" there was an obvious nervous hint to Veronica's question, though Vicki didn't know which boy was bringing it out.

"It was alright. Chester helped out perfectly, we were done in the first five minutes!"

Timmy and Chester took their seats in English class. The desks were arranged in groups of four that faced each other. Vicki sat down across from Timmy in their group of desks, something she never did before.

"V-Vicki? You wanna sit here?" Veronica asked.

"Yeah, gotta keep an eye on the Twerp, it _is_ my job."

"O-okay." Veronica took her seat next to Vicki and in front of Chester.

"Class, today we'll be talking about... Fairies!"

Timmy and Vicki grimaced at the same time and looked to the front of the classroom to see Crocker spazzing out.

Vicki let out an annoyed sigh and looked at the people in her group. "Who's for skipping class?"

"I'm in!" Chester practically jumped out of his seat.

"Oh! Um... sure, Vicki!"

"Cool, let's go." Vicki began raising her hand.

"What about me?" Timmy suddenly added.

Vicki lowered her hand and turned to look at Timmy. "Well... _I'm_ going. So by default, you're going, right?" she winked at him and offered a flirty smile.

Timmy's face blushed red as Vicki raised her hand again.

"Mr Crocker? I need to go download a piece of news about um... fairies, from the internet, may I go to the library?"

"Uh... er... yes! Of course Ms. Valentine." Crocker began writing out a hall pass.

"And I need my three friends to come with me. For reasons."

"Grr... Very well..." Crocker scribbled additional names on the hall pass and handed it to Vicki. "Hurry back..."

"Of course!" that cutesy facade was back too.

"_Yep. Vicki is definitely back to her old self..."_ Timmy smiled at this thought.

"Hey Twerp, you comin'?" Vicki waited for him in the doorway as Chester and Veronica left.

Timmy responded by scrambling out of his chair and nearly knocking it over as he rushed out the door with Vicki.

"You guys do this often?" Chester asked Veronica.

"More often than I should probably admit. Vicki's a bad influence on Trixie and I." Veronica giggled girlishly as she looked at Vicki.

"I'm a bad influence on all of my friends." Vicki put her arm around Veronica's shoulder, bringing out a blush from the blonde girl once again.

"So where are we going?"

"The library." Vicki responded nonchalantly.

"Really? I figured we'd actually skip school and go out somewhere..." Chester sounded disheartened.

"And do what?"

"I got weed."

"Not everyone enjoys pot as much as you do." Vicki shrugged. "Then again, you're Timmy's friend, wanna tell me what he does when I'm not around?"

"Pfft. Timmy? He's a stick in the mud. This is the most irresponsible thing he's done in months!"

"Alright, that's enough outta you." Timmy shoved Chester lightly as they entered the library and took on a decidedly quieter tone.

Vicki flashed her hall pass at the librarian, who looked at the red-head fearfully before returning to her book. "We've got the run of the place." Vicki shoved the pass in her pocket and disappeared down one of the aisles.

"I'm gonna go check out the interwebs." Chester spoke up as he made his way toward a computer.

"Stay off the naughty sites!" Timmy called after him.

"Do you like Vicki?"

Timmy swiftly spun around to face Veronica at hearing her rather random question. "The Hell you say?"

"Vicki. I heard she's living with you since her parents- ...y'know... So I was wondering: Do you like her, or Tootie?"

"Could we talk about this... somewhere where I'm less liable to be murdered?"

"Don't worry, Vicki wouldn't hurt you, especially since you really stuck your neck out for her. Trixie asked her and she said she didn't like you, but I've been friends with her for a while now, I can read her pretty well..."

"You can read her because you have a crush on her."

Veronica's face turned scarlet. "Sh-shut up! It's not like that! And you're avoiding the question. Do you like her?"

Timmy looked around warily for Vicki, then sighed when he didn't see her. "Yeah... but I screwed up."

"How? You didn't kiss Tootie or something, did you?"

"No..." Timmy relayed to Veronica what happened between him and Vicki the night before.

"Oh boy... why would you do that?" Veronica facepalmed.

"I don't know! I told you it was a mistake and I'm feel guilty as Hell for doing it..."

"Guess she was right when she called you a pervert..."

"Great, now you're gonna call me that too..."

"No way. I just think you should probably give her some space so she can try to get over what you did."

"That's my plan, I-"

"Hey Veronica! Look at this!" Chester called over from the computer he sat at.

"Um! Coming!" Veronica looked back at Timmy. "Talk later?"

"Sure." he smiled at her and waved as she jogged over to Chester.

"Might as well find something to read." Timmy headed down one of the many aisles and looked at the various books. "Ugh... poetry..." he left his current aisle and went to a different one, unconsciously hoping he'd run into Vicki while consciously hoping he didn't so he could give her the space that Veronica assumed she wanted.

He ended up in the fiction aisle and pulled out a book that seemed to be about medieval times and dragons. "How cool would it be if dragons were real?" he said to himself.

"Pretty cool..."

Timmy felt a light pressure on the top of his head and glanced up to see a few loose strands of red hair hanging down.

"Fancy meeting you here." Vicki was currently standing behind him and resting her chin on the top of his head.

"Everything alright?" Timmy tried to look up at her without disturbing her too much.

"What were you talking to Veronica about?"

"Um... not much... just about... things... How much have you told her?"

"Enough. She and Trixie know about my current situation, living with you, Tootie being in the hospital, all that."

Timmy sighed out loud. "Well, you can count on her knowing one more thing now..."

"What's that?" Vicki reached in front of Timmy and took the book out of his hands so she could get a better look at it.

"She knows I like you."

"Hm."

Timmy felt a movement from Vicki that seemed to be a shrug.

"I suppose it doesn't really matter, only the most dense people around here don't know about the crush you have on me."

"I don't have a-"

"Yes you do." Vicki flipped several pages in the book. "You like me, you can't take your eyes off me, and you kissed me while I slept. That sounds like a crush to me." her arms now rested on his shoulders as she read the book.

"Are you sure you wanna be this... close at school?"

"Anyone says anything, I'll be happy to have them get acquainted with my fist. Besides, did you really think I'd stop teasing you? Getting you all flustered is easily my favorite thing when it comes to babysitting you."

Timmy almost asked her another question about whether or not it was a good idea for them to be this close to each other at school, but suppressed the question. He enjoyed the closeness they currently shared and he wasn't about to do something to cut it short. "AJ had no idea that I liked you..."

"Really? The Brainiac himself is that dense? That's pretty sad." Vicki shut the book, causing a puff of dust to shoot at Timmy, then placed it back on the shelf. "Do you get the feeling Veronica has a crush on me?"

"Yes." Timmy answered instantly.

"Don't take a few minutes to think about it or anything!" she smirked.

"It's obvious. I figured at first that she just looked up to you like a big sister, but then I saw the way she blushed when you put your arm around her shoulders... yeah, she likes you."

"And now she knows you like me."

"Uh... yeah..."

"Maybe with a little luck she'll calm down around me now..."

"Maybe..."

Vicki rolled her eyes and stepped backward from Timmy. "Don't worry Twerp, I'm not gonna go jumping the fence."

"I wasn't-"

"Sure you weren't." Vicki chuckled as she disappeared around the corner of one of the bookcases.

Timmy watched her leave and exhaled a shaky breath. He immediately realized that he missed her presence, but knew that if things were going to work out between them, he would have to give her space so she could think about things.

"Hey." several books came flying off the shelves, nearly hitting him in the face.

"Watch it! Last thing I need is to be killed with knowledge!"

Vicki peeked through the hole she had made in between the various books. "If I wanted you dead, you'd be dead. Anyway, what's your next class?"

"Algebra..."

"Wrong answer. Your next class is now history!"

"Says who?" Timmy got closer to the bookcase so he could look at Vicki more directly.

"Says me. I'm Ms. Harper's teaching assistant."

"And?"

"And... I'm allowed to recruit an assistant of my own. So after this period ends, you're coming with me."

"And I assume I don't have a choice in the matter?"

"Nope!"

"_How am I supposed to give her space if she insists on being around me all the time?!" _"I thought you wanted space?"

Vicki narrowed her eyes at him. "I do. But I also need to figure out a way to make you pay for that teensy snafu last night. Would you prefer I give you the silent treatment? Or treat you like dirt?"

"No..."

"Then it's settled!"

_Trixie and AJ_

"So wait, you're telling me that my best friend not only has a crush on the devil herself, but he invited her to live with him in his house too?!" AJ exclaimed in History class to the black haired girl sitting in front of him.

"Seems that way. And stop calling Vicki the devil, she's not nearly as bad as you seem to think she is..."

"Did she ever babysit you?"

"Well no, but-"

"Then you don't get a say as to whether or not she's evil! The girl's twisted in every sense of the word, threatening us with weapons, lying to our parents, making us do chores that are unreasonable and that our parents would never ask us to do... the list goes on!"

"You really should be nicer, she just lost her parents."

"I haven't noticed any change in her behavior, seems to me that it didn't even affect her! How can she be so calm and collected?! That's not normal."

"Maybe she's just a tougher person than most are, ever think of that? Look, it doesn't really matter, all I know is that Vicki, Timmy, and Tootie are gonna be living together soon. And now I know that Timmy likes Vicki for sure, so thanks for that!"

"Hm... I- Hey! I just got an idea! Why don't you try asking Timmy out? That way Vicki won't be able to get her claws in him!"

"First of all, why would you think that Vicki would get her claws in him? She told me herself that she doesn't like him like that. Second, I was already gonna ask if Timmy wants to hang out some time. Sounds like he's a pretty nice guy and I need to re-evaluate how I feel about him..."

"So you'll do it? Great! I promise I'll help you get an 'A' in this class from now on if you do!"

"Whatever."

"Sweet! ...By the way, you look really nice today... well, I mean, you look nice everyday... but... I- I'm gonna go ahead and shut up now..."

"O...kay? Thank you?"

_Timmy and Vicki_

Timmy sat at the table next to Vicki with a bored expression on his face. Vicki had already intimidated his Algebra teacher into letting Timmy be her assistant, so now Vicki just had to clear it with Ms. Harper, a teacher known for having a demeanor similar to Vicki's. Several students looked at Timmy with pity, he was at the mercy of two evil women as far as they were concerned.

To be fair though, Timmy wasn't particularly concerned. Vicki seemed to be going surprisingly easy on him, and in all likelihood, Ms. Harper wouldn't bother him too much, seeing as how he was Vicki's assistant, not hers.

"Hello Victoria." a brunette who appeared to be in her early thirties walked in. She was actually pretty attractive, but that wasn't too surprising; it seemed that the evil women in Timmy's life usually were. Timmy thought about something that AJ had coined 'The Sliding Scale of Evilness Vs. Attractiveness', as one becomes more evil, one becomes more attractive. Timmy had brushed off the idea at the time, but the more he thought about it, the more true it seemed to be.

"Hello Helena."

Ms. Harper narrowed her eyes at Vicki for several seconds and Timmy thought an argument was sure to break out, but instead the brunette teacher smiled and laughed it off. "God, sometimes it feels like we all have stage names, doesn't it?"

Vicki giggled. "On that note, this is who I've chosen as my assistant, Timmy Turner." Vicki threw her arm around Timmy's shoulders and pulled him closer with a smile.

"Right, so what's his real name?" Ms. Harper crossed her arms over her chest and gave Vicki a knowing look.

"I'm serious; tell her." Vicki looked at Timmy expectantly.

Timmy looked at Vicki, then at this 'Helena' woman. He felt like he was being sized up by a couple of dragons that were seconds away from burning him to a crisp. "It's- it's true. My name's Timmy Turner, nice to meet you."

"Hmph. You certainly bagged yourself a cute one, eh Vicki?" Helena smirked at the two teenagers.

Vicki released Timmy from her grip as both teens blushed furiously.

"So, are you the same Timmy Turner that decided to take my favorite student in?"

"Favorite student?!" one of the students called from the back of the classroom.

"Yes! Favorite student! If the rest of you worked half as hard as Vicki does, I might not be as mean!"

"How does everyone know?" Timmy whispered to Vicki.

"I have no idea..." Vicki responded.

Ms. Harper turned her attention back to Timmy and Vicki. "So, are you?"

"Erm... yeah- yes. Vicki and her sister are living with me and my parents now."

"I see. Now it makes even more sense as to why you'd want him to be your assistant. You make sure you treat my favorite student with the respect she deserves and I think we'll get along just fine."

"Y-yes ma'am." Timmy replied sheepishly.

Ms. Harper sat down and began teaching her class while Vicki reclined in her seat and put her feet up on the table to relax. Timmy nervously looked between Vicki and Ms. Harper as he sat up straight in his seat, which Vicki took notice of as she cracked open her right eye. "Somethin' the matter?"

Timmy nodded his head back and forth.

"Then what's up?" Vicki followed Timmy's gaze to the teacher and then to the students doing their work while he and Vicki sat doing just shy of nothing. "Ah. You thought I was gonna make your life miserable today, right? Thought I'd get a little revenge for last night by making you work your ass off as my assistant? Hah, perish the thought, I'm not _that_ petty." Vicki closed her eye and stretched a little. "Besides, keeping you close by means I can get you to do whatever I want if I need something. And I'm helping you keep an eye on me, since you think it's necessary."

"So it has nothing to do with you maybe liking me being around?"

Vicki responded with a grin.

_Chester and Veronica_

"Those two are hopeless..."

"Who?" Veronica asked Chester as the two sat in their own algebra class.

"Timmy and Red. He clearly likes her, but he's too chicken to do anything about it, did you see them in the library?"

"I saw. I wasn't sure if Vicki liked him, but that interaction cleared up any doubts I had... they make a cute couple."

"They make an odd couple."

"True enough. But it was really sweet of Timmy to let Vicki and her sister move in with him..."

"I wonder if he planned that all along?"

"Planned for Vicki's parents to die in an accident?"

"No! Planned for her to move in so he could... y'know... get closer to her?"

"You think he's that clever?"

"Timmy? Yeah, he pretends to just drift through life, but he's smarter than he lets on."

"Hm. Well, I hope things work out for them, Vicki could do with some happiness after all that's happened, and watching those two dance around each other is gonna get old..."

"We could always lock them in a closet together. I've heard that usually works."

"I don't know... that seems a little cliché, don't you think?"

"Who cares? The tension between those two is gonna tear the universe asunder at this rate!"

"Somehow I doubt it'll be that bad. Let's just give it some time for now."

"Hnh. Fine... so... you doing anything later?"

"Say what now?"

_Vicki and Timmy_

Timmy followed Vicki out of the classroom and into the hall. "There. That wasn't nearly as bad as you thought it would be, was it?"

"No, I suppose not..." in truth, all Timmy really had to do was hand out a few worksheets over the course of the entire period. After that, Vicki napped and Ms. Harper played with her phone; occasionally glancing at Timmy and chuckling when she noticed he was staring at Vicki. Luckily for him, she didn't bring it up, unlike what Ms. Mason would have done. "Is that how that class usually goes?"

"Pretty much. Helena and I have a mutual understanding with each other, I'm her assistant, so she doesn't have to do as much around the classroom, and I get to do pretty much whatever I want and get a passing grade."

"Hey Timmy! Hey- Ahem... Vicki..."

"Brainiac! How was algebra?" Vicki exclaimed as she and Timmy walked over to AJ.

"Fine...what are you playing at?"

"Playing at? Whaddya mean by that?" Vicki asked far too innocently.

"You're acting nice. Nice for you is invariably the calm before the storm, so what are you playing at?"

"Don't mind him." Timmy spoke up. "AJ's paranoid about everything."

"And now you're defending her again, great. Where were you anyway? You missed algebra!"

"Vicki needed an assistant in history class. I... volunteered."

Vicki looked at Timmy and smirked. _"Defending me in front of his friends _and_ lying to them? He's really trying to kiss up today..."_

"Well are you gonna be in geometry? Or would you prefer to blow that off to hang out with your girlfriend?"

Timmy blushed at this, but Vicki was ready for it.

"What's a matter Baldy? You getting jealous that I want your boyfriend all to myself?"

"No, I'm concerned you're taking advantage of the fact that you get to control even more of my friend's life!"

"Relax. I've got better things to do than turn the Twerp into my minion... though now that you mention it..." an evil smile spread across Vicki's face.

"C'mon Timmy! We're leaving!" AJ grabbed Timmy and pulled him away toward their next class.

Timmy shot Vicki a sorrowful look as he waved bye. Vicki's face was less sorrowful, but there was a clear hint of disappointment on her features as she waved to him and walked off. AJ lead him into their next class: Biology.

"What's up with you? Volunteering to help her out? You-" AJ stopped as the revelation dawned on him. "You really _do_ like her, don't you?"

"Oh my gosh he gets it!" Timmy turned to Trixie and Veronica as they walked in. "Hey you two! AJ finally gets that I like Vicki."

"Brr! You feel that Veronica? I think Hell just froze over!" Trixie laughed as she shuddered mockingly.

"Get ready to see some flying pigs!" Veronica joined in on the joking at AJ's expense.

"You're out of your mind."

"Maybe I am." Timmy shrugged and that was the end of the conversation.

Trixie chose to sit next to Timmy, while Veronica sat on the other side of the room near AJ. "So you don't like the idea of Timmy and Vicki seeing each other?"

"Is it _that _obvious? He's my best friend and he's clearly making a mistake, I just don't want to see him get hurt." AJ replied sadly.

"You ever think maybe you're wrong about her? Maybe she isn't as bad as you say she is?"

"Trixie put you up to this? Vicki's proven innumerable times what kind of person she is. I don't know why Timmy doesn't see it now, like when he did a few years back. He always told us how bad he had it with her and I can vouch for him that he definitely had it the worst... Which is why I can't figure out this sudden change! I'm telling you, Timmy is too nice and forgiving for his own good..."

"You're right, holding a grudge towards someone for the rest of your life is so much more mature." Veronica remarked sarcastically as she turned away from AJ.

"I- Hm..." for once, AJ didn't have a response.

_On the other side of the classroom..._

"So... how've you been?" Trixie asked Timmy.

Timmy looked up from his paper, then around, then over at Trixie. "A-are you talking to me?"

"Yeah-huh. I heard you're letting Vicki stay with you until she's old enough to get a place of her own. That's pretty considerate of you."

"She babysat me for years, it's the least I could do for her."

"Huh. I never knew you were such a caring guy, Timmy." she looked at him with half-lidded eyes, a normally effective flirtatious gesture.

"Uh-huh? Well... I try." Timmy returned his attention to his classwork.

"I was wondering... would you maybe wanna do something later?"

Timmy looked up from his paper in confusion. "Like what?"

"I dunno..." Trixie said girlishly. "Maybe see a movie?"

Was it irony that Trixie was interested in him? Now that he was no longer interested in her? It had to be. Cruel irony. "I... can't today, I have to go see Tootie at the hospital, see how she's doing. Maybe... tomorrow?"

"Okay sure! I'll see you at the theater tomorrow after school! It's a date!"

Timmy returned his attention to his paper and sighed inwardly. _"It's not a date, though..."_

Timmy didn't notice AJ pump his fist in the air on the other side of the classroom.

_Vicki and Chester_

Vicki now sat at her desk in her own algebra class. Chester opted to sit next to her, seeing as how he had little problem with Timmy liking Vicki and had recently learned that Vicki wasn't nearly as caustic as he thought she was.

Unfortunately for both of them, they were currently in another of Crocker's classes. "Bet you we aren't learning any algebra today..."

"I'm gonna go ahead and not take the bet at all, seeing as how-"

"Class, today we'll be reviewing what we talked about last time, that is to say- Bigfoot!" Crocker spazzed out and slammed the back of his head into his desk.

"He really should see a doctor about that." Vicki spoke, her voice betraying no small amount of boredom.

"Maybe, but if he did, I wouldn't be able to make money on the internet off of his freak-outs." Chester was currently using his phone to record Crocker having a crazy seizure-filled rant.

Vicki glanced over at Chester with an intrigued look in her eyes. "How much we talkin'?"

"Enough that I'll be moving out of my trailer and buying a condo in the next couple months."

"Oh yeah? Good for you."

"Thanks!"

"McBadBat! Or... Chesterton... Whatever your name is! No phones in class!" Crocker exclaimed as he quickly walked over to Chester's seat.

"My dad's last name is McBadbat. My Mom's is Chesterton. Either one suits me-" Chester stopped talking as Crocker grabbed for his phone, but Vicki was faster as she snatched it first.

"Actually, it's my phone." Vicki dangled the phone in the air in front of Crocker. "You sure you wanna take it away?" she smiled threateningly.

Crocker's face paled considerably as he backed away and returned to the front of the class.

Vicki tossed Chester's phone back to him when Crocker turned around. "How do you do that?"

"Heheh... girl's gotta have her secrets..." she winked at Chester.

_Everyone_

The bell to signal the end of fourth period rang and everyone made their way to the school cafeteria. After getting their lunch, Timmy, Chester, and AJ sat down at their lunch table. "Feels lonely without Tootie..." Chester remarked sadly.

"She'll be back soon enough... but I know what you mean, I miss her too." Timmy put his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Aw jeez... male bonding..." Vicki took her seat across from Timmy.

"Vicki? You wanna sit _here_?" Trixie asked as she sat down next to the red-head.

"Why not? I'm sure my foster brother doesn't mind, do you bro?"

Timmy grimaced at the term. "How about we stick with 'Twerp'?"

"If you insist." Vicki shrugged and sniffed at her lunch. "I'm not eating this." she pushed it away for it to be quickly snatched up by Chester.

"Score!"

"Don't suppose anyone brought something they wouldn't mind sharing?" Vicki asked sweetly, even though she was sure her sugary facade wouldn't work on her friends, nor Timmy's.

"Sorry, I only brought enough for me..." Veronica spoke while seemingly on the verge of tears from being unable to help her friend.

"Same here." Trixie replied apologetically.

Vicki looked across the table at Timmy and his friends. Chester was currently eating his lunch, as well as hers. AJ gave her an annoyed look and turned his attention to his food, which left... Vicki considered shooting Timmy a pleading look... But instead opted for a flirty smile, knowing it would be just as effective.

Timmy took immediate notice of the look Vicki was giving him and glanced at his friends. He imagined he'd never hear the end of it if he gave Vicki the lunch he had thrown together for her while he made his own. He knew how bad the school cafeteria food was, so packing a lunch had become a habit for him. And seeing as how he wanted to get and stay on Vicki's good side, he had made her a lunch too. _"Well, I've already made my bed..."_ Timmy reached into his backpack and produced two lunch bags from it. "Here." he slid one of the bags across the table and it came to rest in front of Vicki.

She looked at the lunch bag quizzically. She meant for him to share his lunch, she didn't know that he made an entire lunch for her. Several minutes of awkward silence took over the table. _"He-he must've just made something quick... he wouldn't have..."_

"So... this is usually the part where you take the food out and eat it..." Timmy looked at Vicki as she continued to sport a shocked expression.

Vicki opened the bag and peered inside. Within sat a sandwich, chips, and a bottle of pink lemonade. She was half-right, it likely hadn't taken him too long to make the lunch, but he _had _made sure to make it out of things she liked, including her favorite drink. "Th-thanks..." _"Guess I don't have much choice but to let him off the hook now..."_ Vicki took out the lunch Timmy had made for her and began eating it.

Chester was too preoccupied with stuffing his face to have an opinion, Trixie stared in wonder at how much Timmy seemed to care for Vicki, AJ scowled at his best friend, Veronica was barely suppressing a fangirlish freak out at how cute Timmy and Vicki were, and the red-head and brunet in question ate their lunches in silence, both sporting a light dusting of pink on their cheeks.

Lunch proceeded relatively smoothly after that. Vicki and Timmy's respective groups of friends merged into a single group of friends as everyone found they had more in common than they thought they did. AJ even lightened up a bit and relaxed as he talked to the two girls(though he made no attempts at conversing with Vicki). All too soon did the bell ring to signify the end of lunch and the beginning of their fifth period classes.

As Timmy got up from his lunch table, he could feel the tension in the air between Vicki and AJ. He really wished he could go to the same class and act as a buffer between the two of them, but he wasn't doing particularly well in chemistry, so skipping it to keep an eye on Vicki wasn't an option. "I'll see you guys in geometry?"

There was a collective confirmatory response from his friends, since they all shared the class. Timmy made his way to chemistry class and Chester fell into step behind him. "Well, I'd say everyone knows now..."

"It wasn't really a big secret." Timmy said with a wave of his hand. "I told Veronica in the library, she most likely told Trixie, and I told you two."

"But don't girls like a little mystery?"

"Maybe, but Vicki already knew too. Besides, I hate mystery-romances, just tell me who likes who so I know."

"WAIT! You already told her?!"

"Well... not so much told as showed when I- ...It doesn't matter, she knew before today, probably before most of you did, knowing her."

"You're a clever bastard, aren't you?"

Timmy chuckled as he sat down at one of the lab tables in his chemistry class. "Perhaps..."

_Vicki and AJ_

Vicki sat down in her graphic design class; it was an elective she had chosen because she knew it would be easy, she didn't even have to blackmail the teacher.

AJ chose to sit next to her for some reason. "What do you want, Baldy?"

"I want you to keep your claws out of my best friend. I get that you two are living together, but you're planning something, I know it." AJ narrowed his eyes at Vicki.

"My claws? Look, if Timmy likes me, that's how he feels. Ain't nothing you or anyone can do about it. The heart wants what the heart wants, and if his heart wants me... Well..." Vicki smiled deviously. It was mostly just to unnerve AJ though; she didn't have any cruel intentions with Timmy if the two of them did start dating, a possibility that had only recently been allowed to occupy a spot in her mind.

"I don't trust you, no one just gets over their parents dying as quickly as-" AJ was interrupted as he lurched toward Vicki when she grabbed him by his shirt collar and yanked him close so she could whisper in his ear.

"Listen up and listen good, because I don't fancy repeating myself. You can hate me all you want, you can hate Trixie, Tootie, Veronica, even Timmy for liking me and Chester for being okay with it, but if you ever, _ever_ talk about my parents in anything but a positive light, I will make you lust for death, got it?! I heard you were the smart one, so I figured you'd be smart enough to avoid such a sensitive subject, but I guess you're not as smart as your grades would suggest." Vicki shoved him away and back into his seat.

A look at her eyes revealed that they were just slightly red, showing that he _had_ indeed touched on a very sensitive subject. He decided that it would be wiser to back off and moved to a seat on the other side of the classroom.

_Timmy and Chester_

Timmy found that he had an immense amount of trouble focusing in this, his worst class. He kept looking at the clock every few minutes, hoping he could will time to move faster.

"Hey dude? Something the matter?"

"I'm... just worried. It's nothing."

"So, judging by the fact that whenever someone has a look on their face like you do and says 'It's nothing', that must mean that it's actually something, right?"

"It's Vicki, okay?" Timmy snapped at Chester.

"Ah, I knew it." Chester let Timmy's outburst slide, seeing as how he knew he didn't really mean it. "What's wrong?"

"She's in class with AJ. You know, our friend who isn't exactly known for his bedside manner?"

"Why? You think AJ will say something to hurt Vicki's feelings? From what you've told me, and what I know of her, nothing he says would have that kind of effect on her..."

"Any other time, you'd be right, but she just lost her parents, remember? I know she's strong, and I know that I'm probably making a mountain out of a molehill, but..." Timmy looked at Chester. He was clearly unsure about something, but didn't know if Chester was the best person to tell. "If I tell you this, it stays between us, got it?" Timmy was whispering now.

"Sure. I'm here for you man."

"Vicki acts tough, but she's still human. Very human. Losing her parents and almost losing Tootie... it almost broke her. I've never seen her so... defeated. The way she's been acting today? It's the closest thing I've seen to the old Vicki in a few days, and I don't want her to go back to moping around or-" Timmy stopped himself, Vicki hurting herself was definitely going to stay between only him and her. "I'm just afraid AJ might say something stupid to her..."

"Okay, I gotcha... I didn't know she meant so much to you..."

"Me neither..." Timmy sighed and looked at the clock. _"Just five more minutes..."_

The class at last came to an end and Timmy practically rushed out the door to find Vicki. He turned a corner and nearly crashed into the red-head in question, who just looked at him quizzically as he skidded to a stop. "Something up?"

She sounded okay, but years of interaction with Vicki and her slightly bloodshot eyes gave her away. "Are you okay?" the worry in his voice was evident and at the moment he didn't care.

"I'm fine! Why do you ask?" she put up a smile that Timmy could tell was fake.

"Vicki..." he spoke low to avoid drawing attention and watched her fake smile fade.

She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it and opted to stay quiet.

"It was AJ, wasn't it?" Timmy looked up at her sadly.

She had wanted to stay quiet. She didn't want to come between him and his friends... but he was too perceptive for his own good. He read her like a book and immediately knew who the culprit was. She wiped her eyes and walked past him, making sure to nudge his shoulder with hers as she did. "Not here... Later..."

Timmy turned to follow her to his next class, hopefully AJ would keep his mouth shut with the rest of their friends around. As he sat down, he expected Vicki, Trixie and Veronica to sit away from him and his friends, so when she decided to sit next to him, it would be putting it mildly to say that he was shocked.

It felt odd to be sitting with Vicki and her friends now, since they had spent so much time avoiding each other while at school. Not to say he was complaining, and neither were Chester and AJ. Well, AJ was, but mostly just about Vicki. The benefits that being around Vicki brought to the table: Popularity mostly, and the fact that they pretty much had the run of the school paled in comparison to what really mattered to Timmy. There was little denying that he was practically infatuated with her, and now everyone that mattered knew it.

"So what're you guys doing after school?" Chester asked as their teacher went on about geometry and the many things about it that no one in the group cared about.

"We're gonna go see how Tootie's doing, then I guess we're gonna head home." Timmy shrugged.

"Can we go see her?" Chester asked hopefully.

"I don't think so... something about family only. They wouldn't even let me see her until I lied and said I was her brother."

"Ah, figures. Hospitals and their rules, well tell her we all said hi!"

"Will do." Timmy nodded.

The rest of the class proceeded smoothly, which Timmy was thankful for. There was the occasional banter as friends butted heads, but nothing too worrying happened. Timmy breathed a sigh of relief as the last bell sounded and he got up from his desk. He would go and drop off his school supplies at home, then go and see Tootie.

A depressed-sounding sigh to his right shook him from his thoughts of what the rest of the day would bring. He turned to find Vicki walking next to him. He knew there was something wrong now. He was the one to follow Vicki around, yet here she was catching up to him and walking with him. "You wanna walk home? Or take the bus?" he asked her.

"We'll take the bus. I'm feeling lazy today." Vicki yawned as they made their way outside to the school buses.

Timmy got on the bus and passed by several empty seats, he was planning on heading to the back and sitting with Chester and AJ, but felt himself suddenly get pushed into an empty seat nearer to the middle of the bus. This was followed by Vicki sitting down next to him, effectively blocking him from leaving. "Alright, you're sending me mixed signals again..." Timmy whispered to Vicki.

Vicki didn't respond as she slumped into the seat next to Timmy.

He knew that he'd be getting a dirty look or, even more likely, an earful from AJ later. But that was dependent on whether or not Timmy felt like giving him an earful himself. He knew that AJ needed to work on his people skills; all that studying and learning had made him rather oblivious to the feelings of most people. Timmy knew that AJ was just trying to look out for him, but that was hardly an excuse for whatever he must have said to Vicki that made her go back to being mopey. "Still don't wanna talk about it?" Timmy put his hand down next to hers so they were lightly touching.

"When we get home."

It sounded odd for her to say that. Odd, but not unpleasant. _"When _we_ get home..."_

Chester got off the bus first and said bye to the two of them. Timmy expected Vicki to ignore him, but she offered a small smile and waved to him too. Ditto for Trixie and Veronica, who got off at the same stop as AJ, who said bye to Timmy and Vicki as well. Timmy waved and said bye, but Vicki(unsurprisingly), said nothing to Timmy's bald friend.

Eventually, the bus came to their bus stop, and Timmy and Vicki got off the bus to begin the short trek back to their house. Vicki continued being unusually quiet during the walk; he thought she had been doing better after how she acted at breakfast, but now she was back to being quiet and closed off, she wouldn't even talk when he tried to strike up a conversation. After his third attempt, he gave up, she'd talk to him when she was ready.

He opened the front door for her when they got back to the house and she muttered a 'Thanks' as she walked past him into the house. Timmy shut the door with a sigh and tossed his backpack toward the stairs. "So...? Wanna talk about it now? It's just you and me, my parents are probably out enjoying their new found freedom with you babysitting me twenty-four seven."

Vicki sat down on the couch and seemed to contemplate his offer, then patted the spot on the couch next to her.

She would be like that. Make it seem more like he was going to her for comfort, rather than her actually requesting it from him. He moved forward and sat down next to her. After a few seconds, Vicki closed the distance between them and leaned into him, but just barely. "I don't want to come between you and your friends."

He could tell from the tone of her voice that the walls of indifference she favored putting up were already gone. He wasn't talking to the Vicki he knew at school, nor the one he grew up with, and not even the one that had left with him for school today. While it meant a lot to him that Vicki was willing to show this vulnerable side of herself to him, he didn't like the price that had to be paid to bring it out. "I don't want my friends to come between me and you..."

Vicki chuckled wistfully. "You were right."

"What about?"

"I should've taken more time out. I thought I was ready to come back and face everyone... but one little comment and..."

What was he supposed to do? This was exactly what he told her to come to him for and now he felt... nervous? Scared even? Scared of what? Scared to comfort her? _Did _she want him to comfort her? Deciding that he was probably over-thinking this, Timmy looped his arm around Vicki's waist and pulled her closer, consequences be damned.

"Took you long enough..." Vicki exhaled shakily. "I figured that I must've freaked you out for a second there.

"I just... after what you said about needing time to think... and I figured you wanted some space after I- ...You know... I didn't want to assume anything."

"Then I guess you're lucky that I'm in a forgiving mood at the moment... Just don't try it again." Vicki added sternly. "When it's just us... and especially if I've had a bad day, you can forget about me needing space. What I _need_ is someone to be there for me..."

"So what happened with AJ?"

"I told you, I don't want to-"

"Just tell me."

Vicki sighed in exasperation. "I have graphic design with him. He seems to have a big problem with you liking me."

"Yeah, he hasn't been shy in sharing that opinion..."

"Well... he said something to me... He said that I must really be a monster since I got over my parents dying so quickly-" Vicki stopped as Timmy suddenly wrapped both of his arms around her and hugged her tightly.

"I'm sorry... I wanted to come with you; I was afraid that AJ might say something shitty, but I'm not doing great in chemistry... I should've..."

"It's alright..." Vicki let out another shaky breath and hugged Timmy back. "I should've known something like this would happen... I've spent my life making you and your friends miserable, this is just Karma coming back at me..."

"Don't say that." Timmy pulled away to look Vicki in the eyes. "None of this is your fault, okay? You don't deserve any of what's happened, I swear you don't. If- if you wanna take a few days off, I'll take care of your classwork for you..." Timmy smirked at his next thought. "And if you want me to kick AJ's ass..."

Vicki giggled slightly. "No thanks. If I take a few days off now, I'll just be showing AJ that what he said got to me. And don't kick his ass, he's still your friend... even if he is an idiot." Vicki released Timmy and looked at the clock. "Well... ready to go see how Tootie's doing?"

"Sure." Timmy stood up from the couch and offered Vicki his hand.

She took it and rolled her eyes at the gesture as he helped her up. "What a gentleman..."

"You know me- Ah!"

Vicki yanked him forward and into her so he was pressed against her. "But do you know me?"

The sultry look she gave him caused his cheeks to turn red.

"Guess I've still got it." she smirked at him and released him, then headed for the front door. "C'mon. The bus will be here in a few minutes." Vicki walked out, leaving a still somewhat dumbstruck Timmy behind her.

He regained his composure after several seconds and shook his head to clear it of the thoughts that quickly invaded it. Being so close to Vicki had brought back the thoughts from the night before, from when he kissed her. He hoped she didn't notice, but the entire time she was holding him against her, he was staring at her lips again. "Tease..." he muttered to himself as he followed her out the door.

What happened next surprised him. To be clear, it wasn't the walk to the bus stop that surprised him, nor getting on the bus. It wasn't that Vicki took the window seat, or even that she gestured for him to sit next to her. No, what surprised him was that when he did sit down next to her, she pulled him close again and rested her cheek on the top of his head, nearly knocking his pink hat off his head.

"Okay, now you're _really_ sending me mixed signals." Timmy looked up at her.

Vicki chuckled at this. "I'm starting to like being close to you like this..."

"R-really?"

"Don't get all excited on the bus now. I said I'm _starting_ to... but I will admit that I like it... and you."

Timmy tried his best to suppress the grin that was trying desperately hard to make itself known on his face. He imagined his face probably looked pretty silly right now as he fought the grin and fireworks went off in his head. To be fair though, he expected Vicki to take far longer to say that she liked him. He knew that she did like him, but she was more keen to show it through the odd affectionate gesture or a flirty look than to just come out and say it... which she just did.

Vicki glanced down at Timmy and his screwed up face. _"Great, I broke him..."_ "Hey. Did I crash your brain or someth-" she was interrupted once again as Timmy embraced her tightly and nuzzled into the crook of her neck. Vicki had put her arms up at this in shock. She figured he'd be happy, but this was a bit too much PDA. "Alright, c'mon... Let... let go!" she whispered to him. It didn't help that she was starting to giggle because his hair was tickling her neck. "Timmy! I'm serious!" she finally shoved him away and looked out the window to hide her flushed face.

"Sorry!" Timmy put his hands up in defense, but was still smiling like an idiot. "I'm just... happy, that's all!"

"I can see that." Vicki responded but kept her gaze focused outside.

Timmy slid closer to her and leaned into her, he watched as Vicki glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "It's kinda weird to be hugging someone on the bus, then push them away like you just did."

Vicki sighed and hit her head against the window of the bus, then put her left arm around Timmy's shoulders. "Happy?"

"Better than happy." Timmy smiled as he rested his head on her shoulder.

"_Should've just kept my mouth shut..."_

Timmy and Vicki got off the bus and walked the rest of the way to the hospital. Luckily for Vicki, Timmy wasn't being as clingy now and simply walked next to her, though there was a barely perceptible bounce in his step.

They passed through the familiar reception area and took the elevator to the seventh floor, then made their way to Tootie's room to hear that there was a commotion emanating from it.

"I told you I don't need an IV!"

"Ms. Valentine, we just want to make sure you stay hydrated in case you start to feel ill or-"

"I don't feel ill, I'm walking on my own, and I don't need an IV!"

"Guess Tootie's feeling better." Vicki stopped outside the door to Tootie's hospital room.

"More proof right here that she's your sister."

"And just think, now I'll be raising her." Vicki grinned evilly as she opened the door. "How's my little sis doing?"

"Vicki!" Tootie practically shot across the room and crashed into Vicki, who caught her and used her momentum to spin her around.

"I see you're feeling much better!" Vicki hugged her sister close.

"Miss! Please be careful! Tootie hasn't fully healed yet and-"

"Please tell me you're gonna get me outta here! They won't let me do anything and I'm so bored!"

"Well... that _is_ part of the reason we're here..." Vicki released Tootie and stepped aside so Timmy could come into view.

"Hey Tootie." Timmy waved and smiled at her.

"Timmy!" Tootie repeated her previous action with Vicki and crashed into Timmy, wrapping him in a bear hug.

"You sure you're good to be up and about like this?" Timmy asked as he hugged Tootie, happy to see that she was feeling much better.

"Can't keep a Valentine down for long." Vicki remarked as the nurse that had been pestering Tootie left. "So, you about ready to sleep in a real bed?"

"You mean?!"

"Well, not exactly. I think you'll have to wait until tomorrow, but I'd say you've been here long enough."

"So the social worker came?" Tootie's face fell as she realized she'd be going to a foster home. "Where are we gonna live?"

"Jeez Tootie, I thought you'd be happier to be living with me and the Twerp."

Tootie looked up at Vicki slowly. "Wh-what?! We-we're gonna live with...!"

"Yep! Timmy convinced his parents to let us live at their house!"

Tootie turned around to look at Timmy. "R-really?!"

Timmy smiled at Tootie and shrugged. "I couldn't very well let two of my best friends go to a weird foster home, could I- Oof!" Timmy was once again tackled by Tootie, this time being knocked to the floor as she squeezed the life out of him and burst into tears.

"Y-You're the best, Timmy!"

"Heh... well, I try." Timmy scratched his nose with his index finger.

"And so modest too..." Vicki facepalmed as she moved to help her sister and Timmy up.

* * *

><p>AN2: Well, that's enough for this chapter, it's turning into a monster at this rate. Let me know how you like this so far, my muse has been a bit depressed lately and would love some reviews(as would I) please and thank you.


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